The Last Gunslinger
by amateurtenor
Summary: Retired Fast Draw Artist, Thai "Tim" Nguyen, better known as The Second Fastest Gun in the West, has made a living as a car enthusiast in Tokyo, Japan. When the Apocalypse suddenly threw Thai into the fray, he would soon find himself wrapped in a convoluted plot by a mysterious figure.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: I do not own Owari no Seraph! That belongs to whoever made it (Takaya Kagami?). I hope whoever has the time to read the story enjoys it. Please leave any comments or criticism below. Thank you!**

* * *

Prologue

I clocked in at 6 in the morning at the garage. Warm black coffee in my hand,I sat down on a desk inside the office before reviewing the orders placed a couple nights before by Night Crew. We were expecting new parts for the cars inside the shop currently as well as a new 6v71 Supercharger for a Cleveland Engine that was supposed to be installed to a customer who bought one of the boss' cars, a red 1960 Impala Convertible. The car was in excellent condition-you could practically see yourself in the reflection of the polish-but, the only problem was that it didn't have the supercharger.

The order was seemingly late as always and the shop was closed for now. The customer was supposed to arrive in half an hour and I haven't made the finished product for him. The boss couldn't make it today-he had a friend's wedding to attend to back in the States. War Boy's Garage was his idea, one that wanted to give American Muscle to Japanese customers. While we could be somewhat outcompeted by premium Japanese sports cars, many car enthusiasts craved American Cars. We would also fix up any cars or motorcycles that came our way. It wasn't always a high-paying job but it was still enough to allow me to live comfortably in Tokyo, Japan.

I finally received a call on the phone. It was the boss.

"Tim?" A gruff voice came from the phone.

"Yeah, it's me,"I answered. "Hey, we got a problem. Guy's gonna be here in about twenty and the supercharger ain't here."

"Yeah, the guy knows already, but he insisted on meeting you."

"Me? I never even met the guy."

"Well, when I met him to sell the car a few weeks ago, I told him a lot about you and the guys but he seemed more interested in you. Also he's seen you around sometimes. I guess it was because you're, like, the only not-white person there all the time."

"I-I guess, but we're in Japan and I'm Southeast Asian American. That's like a couple islands down South. I can practically pass off as one of them."

"Well that's what probably made him so interested in you. You're the only Asian in War Boy's that works there full-time. Hell, your car is one of the best ones we have."

"You know I decked it out with Japanese stuff right? It might have a V8 but a lot of the exhaust, braking and even the coolant system were Japanese-made."

"Ah don't sweat it. A lot of our cars have Jap stuff in it. My personal car is one of the only pure American Muscle."

"You're probably right, man. What's this guy like?"

"Eccentric, to put it lightly. Dude has long flowing silver hair, a weird smile-oh, by the way he isn't Japanese, he's like...European or something."

"European? At least he know's a bit of English, right?"

"Fluent to a tee. He's very cheerful...in a weird way-"

"-is he gay? Does he know I'm taken?"I laughed.

I heard a hoarse laugh through the phone. "I don't think so. He'll most likely try to get all 'buddy-buddy' with ya'. He did for me. Notin' wrong with dat."

The door across the garage opened and two men came out from it. Both had white suits on with a black piece stitched onto the left jacket sleeve just below the shoulder. They wore black shoes and white gloves.

"Hey hold on they're here. I'll catch ya later." I hung up the phone. "Come on in guys!"

When they stepped in the first thing I noticed was their height. I was around 5'9", maybe less, but the customer himself was a few inches taller. The person behind him, a red and black-haired European, was a full 6' tall.

The first person, who I assumed was the customer, had a slender build. The most notable thing about him was that he had long silver hair that went all the way down to his hips. His hair was tied in a long ponytail in the back by a black ribbon. A few bangs on either side of the ear as well as smaller ones above his eyes were also noted. He was smiling a charming, yet creepy smile.

The person behind him was more muscular and larger than the first person, boasting a larger chest and broad shoulders. His maroon bangs were more pronounced than the assumed customer. His darker hair in the back was tied in a long braid behind him that reached around his left shoulder. Unlike the customer, he had an unassuming face of slight confusion.

What caught my eye as I went to shake the customer's hand was their eyes. Their red irises gazed at me, almost catching me off guard. I have never seen anything like it before, but it being Japan, it could be just a colored contact. I decided not to say anything about it.

"You must be the guy who bought the car. Name's Thai, but you can call me Tim."

The customer shook my hand, giving me a long smile doing so.

"Hello, Tim-san. I'm Ferid Bathory. Behind me is my friend, Crowley Eusford." Just like I heard from Richard, his tone was bright and cheerful.

I shook Crowley's ungloved hand. "Whoa! You're cold as hell,"I chuckled. "Stuck in a freezer, are we?"

He smiled nervously and agreed.

"Alright Ferid-san, the car is ready. I understand you did all the paperwork and whatnot, you're just here to get the car-" I led the two out of the office and towards the car, "-but, the supercharger we ordered is coming in late. Something about a car being torn in half blockin' the road or somethin' like that. Kids these days with their destructive habits, am I right? All amounts of crazy shit happening recently. Did you know that all the animals at the Ueno Zoo-y'know the one down in Tokyo-they all died overnight! The whole lot of 'em! Poisoned...ain't that a bitch."

"Overnight?"Ferid said, shocked.

"Damnest thing too, they blocked the entire area off. Oh well, what are you gonna do?"

I took the canvas covering the car off to reveal a shiny, red 1960 Impala Convertible. Sharpie lines along the hood of the car already imprinted where to cut to install the supercharger. "Now once it comes, it's gonna probably take around four, maybe five hours for me to install it. If you want I can wipe the lines off and you can take it for a joyride. Honestly, this is, like, the first time anything like this has happened around here."

"I think we'll just wait here." He walked around and wrapped his left arm around my shoulder. "Care to give us a tour~?"

Creepy, yet charming, I considered his request. "Err...I guess. We are technically closed for today. Hold on, lemme grab my coffee."

I showed the two around the garage, from where we store our oil, gas and coolant to where we kept our cars, a separate facility connected to the main garage via a aluminum door. I showed them Haru's Corvette, Mark's Ford F-100, Allison's Ford Model B with a V12 Engine, Michael's 1970 Holden Monaro with a Pontiac front, and Harrison's Volkswagon Beetle with an open-faced V8 engine. They were particularly interested in my own car, the 1972 Ford Mustang Mach 1.

"Is that your car?"Crowley asked.

I smiled to myself; the Mach 1 was always a crowd pleaser. "That it is. The Lusus Naturae. A custom elongated chassis made of German and Norwegian steel and aircraft aluminum, with the shell of a Second Generation American Mustang Mach 1 bolted on. The shell, as you can see, is buffered down to just the steel-no paint or nothin'. Yeah, me and the ol' car have history. The engine is a 572 Chevy Big Block, supercharged with the same supercharger that you want. It's got a 1271 blower to supply a constant flow of compressed air that gets this baby up to 1000 plus horsepower. Custom exhaust pipes that goes all the way out from the rear wheel tire opening and out behind the car. Now you can notice that the boot door is actually taken out and that's cuz I needed to see behind the car. The suspension raises the car another few inches and the tires are premium racing tires. All and all, it is one of War Boy's pride and joys. Gas mileage is a pain though. I don't drive this often."

"You made this yourself?"Ferid asked. He looked as if he wanted to buy my car instead of Richard's. He whistled as he ran his hand along the shell.

Flattered, I couldn't help but smile."Well, I obviously had help, but most of the work was from me alone. Truth be told, if there was any kind of trouble with this car, I'd be the last one to notice. This used to be the Boss' niece's car back when it was just a trouble-makin' hot rod. But, when I came to Japan two and a half years ago, she let me have it. Since then, it was a pain in the ass to work on."

"You're American, right?"

"Yep, born and bred. Straight from the sunny valleys and misty beaches of California. Came over here to study abroad."

"What're you studying?"

"Biology."

There was a mutual silence throughout the garage.

"Yeah-yeah, I know. The hell's a Bio Major working in an Automobile shop for? It's the only work I could get that I knew how to do. You think two and a half years of being in Japan would get you to learn Japanese but I can't figure anything out. Took me a long time to figure out things just by recognition alone. Biology isn't doin' so well for me anyhow."

"What were you doing back home before this?"

"I worked at a burger joint when I wasn't in school. I'll tell ya, the Food Industry sucks..."

"Was that all you did? Work and School? You must've had a boring life. You didn't do anything extracurricular?"

"Nah, I-"

Someone burst through the doorway. He immediately looked at us and walked towards us. I was immediately offput by his general look.

"Hey buddy...uh...how do you say...wareware wa tojite iru...we're closed, sir."

"NO!" He pulled a pistol at me. "All your money! NOW! I WILL KILL YOU"

Ferid and Crowley looked at me.

I looked back at the guy, the hair standing up on the back of my neck. "Sir, I don't know what in the fuck you are doing-"

"-you think I'm kidding! I WILL KILL YOU!"

I growled under my breath; I felt a familiar rush of adrenaline and a shiver down my spine.

"Did you just threaten me?" I asked. "I dare you to say that to my face again."

"I said I-"

Not a second later, the silver hairpin that held my hair together ended up square in his chest. The man dropped his gun and just looked at his chest with a blank expression. He looked at me, the man pale and scared, before falling down on the ground. The two customers beside me looked back at me, shocked at how fast I threw the pin when my hands were still crossed. Finally realizing what I had just done, I groaned and nervously ran my hand through my hair. I nearly killed a guy in self-defense. My heart was beating rapidly and all I could think was about what to do next. The man wriggled on the ground, groaning in pain.

Half an hour later, the three of us were waiting in the office as paramedics took the criminal to the ambulance. The police told me that since I didn't kill the guy and that there was plenty of evidence to accuse the attacker of attacking me, I was right to take him down. I filled out a statement and there would be no need for me to be in the court case. The whole ordeal lasted for two hours. However, they still took the hairpin away from me, saying that it could be mistaken for a dagger.

It was just the three of us again once they left. Just as I stopped another asthma attack with the push of an inhaler, Ferid immediately asked how I did that so fast.

"Ah shit," I still had my hands covering my eyes. "Umm...some guys I would go hunting with taught me how to do Fast Draw. They were professional gunslingers-quickdrawers every one of 'em. Everything from a Colt Peacemaker to the hairpin."

"You learned how to accurately fire a gun in a mere second after grabbing it? Incredible."

I rubbed my left thumb against the side of my left index finger. "It came to me as if it was...innate. Even those guys felt their records were being threatened until I broke 'em all. A uh...college professor measured the speed of my quickdraw and it was something like...0.19 seconds?"

"That fast?"Crowley asked.

"'You're withstanding 10 G's of Force,' he said, or something like that."

"That's amazing! I never knew anyone could do that."

"The fastest person is Howard Darby, with Bob Munden just barely behind me. Are you guys seriously not scaved by what just happened?"

"What do you mean?"they both asked, confused.

"I just nearly killed a guy and y'all are still calm."

"You did handle the situation pretty well." Ferid lightly shook my shoulder.

I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. "If only I had your sense of calmness..."

Ferid started lightly giggling. "Well~"

"Ferid,"Crowley interrupted.

When I looked back, Ferid had his face a few inches next to mine. It was then that I noticed something in his mouth that glinted off of the fluorescent lighting above. I blinked and it wasn't there anymore. Ferid immediately retracted. Just then, the door burst open again. We all turned around; I nearly jumped off of my seat.

"Tii-chan!" It was Haru.

I nervously chuckled, covering my eyes with my hand. "Don't worry everybody. This is Haru, the foreman's right hand man...and also-"

A pair of arms grabbed me and hauled me into Haru's reach. "-a very concerned boyfriend!"Haru said.

"Okay..."I softly said, embarrassed slightly as Haru slightly started straddling me. "I guess you saw through the cams?"

"Ohhh...fufufu. Tim-san has a boyfriend? How delightful,"Ferid smiled. Crowley seemed un-phased.

"Okay, I'm fine, Har,"I muttered, embarrassed.

"Kara is out but she'll talk to you later. Where's your hair pin?"Haru asked.

"Where do you think?"

"Oh...I'm sorry."

Things were getting a little awkwarder as Haru kept pressing me against him. I could feel Ferid and Crowley's eyes staring at me.

"Okay,"I said. "Umm...well, I'm fine, Haru-kun. Don't you need to be back at the Shrine? I'll meet you there after 5."

I could feel Haru's grip tighten. "Are you sure?"Haru said, his tone getting tense.

I quickly thought of something to say. "I'm still waiting on that damn supercharger..."

Haru grunted under his breath. "Hmph. Fine, I'll catch up, okay?"

"Definitely. I'll see you later, okay?"

He quickly kissed my cheek, hinting that there would be hell to pay once I see him again. Haru walked away after, closing the door behind him.

All the time, I could see Ferid smiling uncontrollably as if he really enjoyed watching the two of us interact. Crowley seemed unmoved, but he kept his gaze at me. It looked as if they were watching a soap opera and I was the main star. The quiet atmosphere was too much to bear. I felt embarrassed, but I had to look professional in front of the customers. I dusted off my jacket and decided to turn my attention back to them.

"Sorry about that,"I nervously chuckled. "Concerned boyfriends...and such."

"Awww-Tim-san has a boyfriend!"Ferid chuckled.

"Hey, come on,"I growled. "Don't make fun of me and my boyfriend."

"I wasn't!"he gleefully said. "I just think it's cute that you two can openly express yourselves in front of people."

Shocked, I stuttered my reply. "Well...that was...man, today's a weird day."

Luckily, the supercharger came in midway through the conversation, It took me a few hours to finish, but the car was ready. I was working so hard that I didn't even notice. Crowley and Ferid walking away for an hour before coming back. I guess they got tired of waiting for me. On the table next to the car, they left a can of beer and a takeout rice bowl next to the toolbox.

"Well shit,"I chuckled. "You didn't have ta'."

"Think of it as an apology for creeping you out before. Frie~nds?"

I chuckled. "Well shit, we are now!"

I grabbed the can of beer and joined the two for a toast. Just then, as the cans clunked against each other, something strong just passed my nose. It was heavy in iron and sanguine in essence. I coughed and felt my asthma coming up; the scent caught me off guard as I lowered my can.

"Whew! You guys smell blood?"

"That guy was bleeding all over the floor."

I looked at their cans; I could've sworn it came from what was inside, but I shrugged it off. "Probably. Got 'im good, didn't I? Kempay!"

I took a drink, raising my head just enough to see the digital clock above one of the cars resting beside the fading cobalt-blue walls. I then noticed the picture above. It was the 4th Anniversary of War Boy's Opening on February 15. Haru and I recently became Hot Rod workers and the Boss just married the girl of his dreams. We had a giant party to celebrate all three occasions and in the end we all took a group picture of both Day and Night Crews together around the first car we ever imported and built at War Boy's: a Ford Falcon XB GT, or as most people would know it as the Interceptor. What no one knew about that day was that that was the day Haru and I had our first kiss inside my nearly finished Lusus Naturae.

I softly chuckled to myself before looking at the time. It was nearly noon.

"Oh f-" I nearly spat out my beer.

"What?!"they both asked in unison.

"We gotta go! I was supposed to be outta here by noon. Are you guys cool with that?"

"Sure. Do you have a date to go to?"Ferid asked, nudging me with his elbow.

"Ferid..."Crowley sighed.

"No,"I laughed. "I babysit on days off. Keeps me eating, huh? Alright, well it's been both great and weird...the latter not on your part of course, but nevertheless, an eventful day. Ferid, the car is yours."

I handed Ferid the keys and in a few minutes I turned off the lights and locked the place down. I bowed slightly to the two customers as they drove off before I grabbed my personal vehicle, a small motorbike. It wasn't something to behold, but it was better than wasting gas in driving the Lusus Naturae. I hastily navigated around crowded streets and narrow alleyways, looking for my destination. Finally, I found myself in front of a large apartment complex just as the clock struck at 1. I kept muttering tagalog to myself as I hurriedly made my way up to the six or seven flights of stairs before running into the father I was supposed to meet. I bowed to him rapidly, still tired from running up the stairs, before apologizing to him profusely. He simply laughed it off.

"It's okay, Shiho and Mirai are waiting. They are getting good at English."

"Oh wow! Very good. Thank you, Mr. Kimizuki-san."

Shiho and Mirai were the two kids I had been babysitting for the past year. The pay was good, around 1,600 Japanese Yen (or just around 20 US dollars) an hour for around two to four hours per day of babysitting. At first I was content with my usual job in fixing cars and building them, but most, if not all, the money went into college. I was fine babysitting-I babysat four babies and three children when I was in the States-but, when I got to Shiho, he wasn't as content about it as I was. He was rebellious; he wanted me out. However, one day I happened to pass by him as three older kids were ganging up on him, ready to beat him up. I saved him, pushing Shiho back and then shoving the oldest kid away. Those kids ran off, leaving me to take Shiho with me. Still, Shiho didn't like the idea of me helping, until I took him to Kara's private residence in Nagoya an hour later.

Because Shiho's parents needed to coincidentally go out, I decided to take him with me when I was practicing Fast Draw with Kara at her private residence in Nagoya. While I didn't mean for him to watch me, he saw me through the crook of the door as I set up two target balloons ten feet apart before placing myself fifteen feet away from both balloons. In a blink of an eye, I shot both balloons in one single motion before holstering my gun. It wasn't much, but it was a silent bonding moment. He was ultimately impressed and wanted to see more tricks. Since then, I taught him basic English, Math, Science, how to drive (secretly) and how to hold your ground in a fight. Sometimes I would show him a card trick or two. Over time, he softened up. It got to the point where I had to sleep over one night when the parents had a trip to Okinawa.

Today, it was just a usual work day for them. I let Shiho and Mirai do their own thing, leaving myself to read the newspaper and listen to the news on the TV. After half an hour of silent reading, Shiho tugged on my jacket.

"Huh?"I grunted. "Hey there, kiddo. What do you want? Another trick?"I started ruffling through my jacket pockets for my deck of cards.

"Dad said you need to take us to the doctor-"

"-at 2, yeah, I know. Same here, they say this 'flu' is goin' around and I need my shots but I didn't see anyone sick. I'll probably wait on it."

He kept looking at me.

"Something wrong? Lemme guess, you heard a word I said that you didn't understand."

"Your eyes."

"Hmm? Oh, how blue they are?"

"I haven't seen anyone with blue eyes before."

"Well, like I said, everyone is different. For us Asians, eye color is usually brown, but blue eyes are rare. I somehow got stuck with 'em. Makes me unique, no?" I started drinking another coffee.

"U..Unique?"

"Not like anything else. One of a kind." I rose the cup to my lips, taking a sip of coffee.

"Is that why your boyfriend-"

I nearly spat everything back into my cup. "Where did you hear that?"

"I heard you talking to him on the phone yesterday. I thought only girls can have boyfriends?"

"Umm..."I grunted. "Well...oh boy...when someone loves another person, it's usually a boy and girl, right? Like mom and pop."

He nodded yes.

"Well...sometimes...a guy comes to...love another guy and while it may seem strange there is nothing wrong with it."

"Really?"

"What? You're telling me-"

"No!"he said, flustered.

"Look, it's a natural thing, just follow what's right. Stay in school, listen to your parents, and me especially, because I know you're destined for greater things. Just look at me! I'm both a master gunslinger and a college student going into medicine...maybe."

"You really think I will grow up into someone good?"

"Of course! You and your sister. The most important thing is that you two stick together. Right? Family is everything. And...as a bonus-"

I placed my hand behind the back of his head and retracted it, revealing a hidden Ace of Spades.

"-if you need me, I'll be there, guns blazing."

After painfully getting a shot before returning Shiho and Mirai back home, I met Haru back at the shrine in Yamanashi. I ran up its long stone staircase, heavily breathing to control my asthma, as I finally made it to the red arch. I passed under it, leaning myself over the shrine's well. I caught my breath, trying to stop myself from vomiting all over the place, but suddenly, a wooden stick hit the back of my knees. I groaned in pain as I fell down, my hands still gripping onto the well. It was the Head Shinto Priest wielding a bamboo broom.

"If it isn't the American,"he smiled.

"Seijouro-san! I'd bow, but I'm on the floor."

He helped me up, laughing. "You gave Haru a heart attack!"

"I know-I know...is he here?"

"He's in the garden. Watch out...he's practicing Kenjutsu again."

"Oh boy...arigato."

I made my way towards the garden, going down another staircase towards a small clearing in the hillside. Inside a large clearing of rock stood a beautiful patch of verdant grass circled by numerous cherry blossom trees. The trees themselves already lost all of their flowers, now green with numerous leaves. In the middle of the patch of garden was Haru, wearing a men's kimono and grey hakama. In his hands was a wooden practice sword. He sheathed it as he saw me enter the garden. He smiled softly and lightly shook his hair away from his eyes. My heart fluttered.

I approached Haru. "Haru-kun, sorry I'm-"

He quickly drew his sword and struck me in the gut as I took a step forward. "-Late?"

"Yeah...late,"I winced in pain. "You're getting faster..."

"Almost as fast as you?"Haru stepped behind me.

"Huh?"I chuckled, getting up. "Maybe..."

He struck me again in the back; I dropped to my knees. "Wha-? Why?"I groaned.

"What was that? Sending me out so fast? Don't you love me?"

"I didn't want to make the customers feel uncomfortable,"I said.

"They looked perfectly fine to me,"he pouted.

"Yeah...they were,"I said as Haru helped me up. "Haru, you know I'm gonna be fine. I just...didn't want anyone to feel uncomfortable. You know how people view us sometimes."

Haru sighed softly and lowered his head.

"You know I love you." I moved the bangs from Haru's face.

He dropped the sword and brought me in. He nuzzled the top of my head as he placed his hands around me. I smiled, chuckled, and closed my eyes, embracing his warmth. It was a cold day today, but I was immediately warming up as he brought me down, lightly rolling me around.

"Ha-Haru! You'll get dirty!"I laughed.

"Mmm...are you okay?"

"Wha-What do you mean? Of course I'm okay."

"About earlier today...that man?"Haru looked at me dead in the eye.

I immediately went still, taking in a deep breath. "There's nothing to think about that. I was threatened and I took him down. He was practically askin' fer it."

"Tim-kun-"

"No...he was threatening me and two customers with a pistol! I wasn't gonna let him run off with our money. Our CARS!"

"And you felt no remorse?"

The garden went silent again. I coughed and looked down. I closed my eyes, still seeing the wriggling body of the man on the ground, a stream of blood flowing from the wound where the hairpin was lodged. A tear welled up in my eye; I started to lightly shiver. I could hear sand blowing in the distance and the stomping of boots on barren ground. I couldn't breath, only smelling sand and burning black powder.

"I nearly killed him...I nearly killed him,"I said. "Oh God...what have I done?"

"It's okay. It's over, Tim-kun-"

"-I didn't want to do it-"

"-Tim-kun."

"Oh no...what if he-"

"-TIM!"

He brought my face up to his. My sense of fear and agony was overwhelmed by Haru's stern expression. He stared at me again with his beautiful eyes, once again silencing the garden. His dark reddish brown hair nearly covered his face when the wind came in, but I could still feel his focused gaze. He sighed softly and placed his forehead on mine.

"It's okay. You did the right thing and took him down. I would of done the same thing. You're the fastest-"

"-second fastest."

He sighed softly. "Second fastest Gunslinger in the world. You just saved two clients, the money in War Boy's, and possibly one of our cars, if not, yours! The Police were practically trying to look for this guy for a month!"

"They were?"

"He was in the news. They hinted that they were going to interview you, but Kara was quick to get them to step off."

"Dear God...it was that bad?"

"There's nothing to worry about. He'll be in jail and you'll be a local hero. It won't be like...you know."

I groaned and closed my eyes, hearing a church bell ring at High Noon. "Juarez...Not a day goes by without remembering Juarez. But, you're right." Still with a maudlin tone, I stopped shivering. "I saved two clients. In the end of the day, no one who didn't deserve it got hurt today. I get to live another day...and see the face of my dreams."

Haru returned the kiss. "Are you sure you're okay?"

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes again. I was never good with words, but Haru was always listening to what I had to say, even if he had to pry it out of me. However I couldn't help but contemplate those last words. I was not okay. Two days later, I would find out that the robber died from his wounds, putting a second one under the belt. I feared that this would happen, and the anxiety of it started today. I clutched Haru's arms, but release my grip as I slowly let out another large exhale.

"I'll be fine, for now. Let's just relax for a bit...I need a drink."

Since that day, Crowley Eusford had been catching me on my days off from both work and babysitting. Including Ferid Bathory, those two shortly became my friends after buying the car from me. Every other week when I would commute from the University towards War Boy's or my own apartment, those two would somehow find me and walk with me. A lot of the times we just went to grab drinks before going to work. After a while it was just Crowley who then wanted to walk with me. Often he would ask me why I would curse so much.

"I mean, it's a bad habit. It just...comes out."

"So, you're just like every other American that comes here to visit?"

"Yeah, pretty much. The guys and I do like to roast each other. It just seems normal in a way."

Today, as we were walking, I decided to show him a new trick. I told him to imagine a card in his mind before telling me the card. Meanwhile, I shuffled a deck of cards in my hands.

"Hmm...Four of Hearts."

"Okay, let me...oh! Oh shit, um...that's awkward I can't seem to find..."

I showed him the fan of cards I made to show him that I couldn't find the card, until-

"-wait! I just remembered! I always keep..."

I put back together the deck and reached into my right pocket to grab-

"-the Four of Hearts. I forgot I always kept a card in my pocket!"

I could see Crowley try and force down a smile.

"That was good, huh? Yeah, the guys back in California got tired of my tricks real quick. Told me to become a magician and not a shooter."

"Do you ever miss home, Tim-kun?"

I snickered and slid the deck back into my pocket. "Every fuckin' day, man. I wish I could go over there for Christmas, say 'hi' to the folks and eat Filipino food again, but Airplane tickets are sold out and air fares are expensive regardless. I can't make it this year. I was gonna Skype them though."

"So what are you going to do?"

"You remember Haru? A little taller than me? Hair almost like yours? Boyfriend?"

"Oh, him?"

"Yeah we've been dating for a while, around a year or so, and because of my predicament, he wants to date me on Christmas Day before taking me out to his Family's celebration."

He chuckled under his breath.

"What's so funny?"

"I still can't believe someone like you could be gay."

I grinned at him. "You okay with it? It's not like I'm putting on women's clothes, talking like a weird accent, and flamboyantly walking like I'm a runway model. Besides, I'm not gay; my boyfriend is."

He snickered, as if he knew what I was talking about. "No, I'm just having a hard time believing a person as dangerous as you harbors such tender and sensitive feelings for the same sex."

"Alright, I'm just gonna assume that means it's okay. I'm hungry. You?"

"No. I just ate before meeting you."

"Alright, cool."

"What's your favorite food, pray tell?"

"My favorite? Well, to be truthful...I love the food here, but nothing beats a good ol' one half-pound American Cheeseburger with Mozzarella cheese, grilled onions and mushrooms, grilled jalapeños and bacon with a side of fries and a tall glass of Coca Cola."

"Sounds...delicious."

"Bro, it is. I usually make one in my apartment a couple times a month."

"Hmm. Do you...wanna come over at my place one day? Maybe after Christmas?"

I guffawed. "You asking me out too? I'm flattered."

"No, I'm not,"he smiled. "But, you are interesting to talk to."

"Thanks. I might just take you up on that offer."

Shinjuku square was lit up with the hundreds of thousands of lights that illuminated off of the countless buildings that surrounded the tightly-packed streets. Cars, motorcycles and buses whizzed past me as I made my way down with the other hundreds of people walking around. The air smelled crisp with the ever-permeating scent of the city sidewalk and cigarette smoke accompanied by car exhaust. As I kept walking my usual fast pace, the breeze continuously cooled down my face. I kept my inhaler close, hoping I wouldn't randomly start choking again.

I was meeting Haru somewhere in the midst of this chaos, our biggest date ever since I first met him in the garage. I was eager to not be late again; I owed Haru for helping me out during the entire time here. I never really could fluently understand the language around me, everything seemed too foreign for me to understand. While there were some signs in pain English as well as the University itself, I never could orient myself to learn it all. Haru sent me the front title of the building, giving me a heading to check.

I enjoyed my entire two and a half years here and I was getting ready for Christmas but before that, I needed to go shopping with Haru. Although I already had a gift for him, I still took him up on his offer to go shopping. Tonight was an exceptionally great night to go walking. I guessed to myself that I was nearing the store. I started picking up my pace so that I could keep him from waiting when all of a sudden a women bumped in to me.

"Oh cr- I'm sorry,"I chuckled.

She started violently coughing before turning to face me.

"Are-are you okay?"I stuttered, gripping her arms.

She started seizuring and suddenly coughed up blood, some getting on my jacket, arms and face. She dropped dead in front of me, the body dropping on the pavement violently. Everyone else looked as shocked as I was.

"Oh my GOD!"I shouted.

Suddenly, people all over started dying the same way. Cars started running in to each other and people were even jumping out of buildings. A motorcycle came running towards me, the driver suddenly dropping out of the seat. I nearly dodged it and landed on someone. I turned around and saw the blank stare of the dead staring back. I screamed and shot back, dropping onto the sidewalk. Everyone around me was dying bloody. I then heard a loud crash in the sky. An airplane suddenly dove into the city just a few miles out. A fiery inferno erupted from the explosion. A gas truck that ran over cars, civilians and everything else, tipped over and released its contents all over the street.

I looked around at all the chaos that happened, unable to process what just happened. Everywhere it seemed as if everyone was dying. Newscasts popped up and all over the world people were dying the same way. The news only turned on for a mere minute before the reporters died as well. My heart raced and I could barely breath. Then I heard it. "TIM-"

"Haru!"

Still clutching onto the gift I had for him, I dashed across the street and broke through the glass wall inside a clothing store. I kept calling out his name, throwing stand after stand of clothes that were in my way. I finally got to the cashier upstairs and saw Haru lying in a pool of coughed up blood. His pupils were nearly dilated and his breathing labored. "Haru!"I cried. I picked him up in my arms and held him closer. He was cold to the touch; he clutched onto me with a weakened grip.

"Tim..."he softly whispered. His hand, cold to the touch, ran across my cheek, wiping the tears from my eyes. "...I'm...sorry."

"No-NO!"I roared. I would probably share his fate but the thought of us dying so soon.

He shoved a box to me. "I...love..." His eyes slowly closed and his breathing slowed to a stop.

"Haru. No...PLEASE!"

I laid my head on top of his, waiting for my own death to come. But, no matter how long I've waited nothing happened. I cried out to God to end me, to let me be with the dead. I hadn't the muster to end myself and just as expected, God didn't listen. Surely everyone I knew died alongside the world. I cried and roared in agony, still clutching the lifeless body of Haru in my arms, the two gifts on top of him. I kept asking myself how this could of happened. _Maybe this was a dream? Maybe it-_

A crash destroyed my train of thought. I slowly walked outside, still with Haru in my arms, to see a desolate wasteland before me. The sky filled up with black smoke and flame. The buildings were all but destroyed. Bodies littered the streets along with destroyed cars, buses, plane parts and with more fire covering it all.

"What happened?...how could have this happened all so fast?"I asked myself, paralyzed with fear.

Suddenly, two hooded people came into view. I couldn't make out their faces but the cloaks they wore gave off a weird vibe. No matter, I was too frightened to just stand there anymore.

"I-I need some HELP!"I cried out. "PLEASE!"

They turned to each other and started talking. Although a while away, I could still make out their conversations. "An adult human still alive? I thought it was just children?"

Adult human?

Children?

"I-I need some help!" I repeated. "Please!?"

They came closer just as I heard an announcement out of nowhere, like it came out of a PA system hooked up to the entire city. I looked up, trying to find the source of the noise. The announcement overpowered the destruction around me.

[This is a warning. Due to foolish humans, a virus has spread. Unfortunately, the human race will perish. However, we know that the virus does not affect children thirteen and younger. Therefore, we, the direct unit of the Third Progenitor, Krul Tepes, will start the protection of children in this district.]

I looked back at the hooded figures, stepping slightly back. They came closer and their faces were revealed. Pale faces, blood red eyes and fangs. I couldn't believe it-they were vampires. I started hyperventilating, wanting to run but unable to move.

"N-now wait a minute,"I muttered, backing up as I did so, "L-let's not get too irrational."

"Calm down and come with us human,"one of them said.

"I ain't goin' anywhere,"I roared. "I just been through ten minutes of this goddamn virus and you guys said I'm go'n die. I am NOT IN THE CALMING DOWN MOOD GODDAMMIT!"

They looked at each other and one of them grabbed a sword from underneath his cloak. "Last chance, human. Surrender or die."

I felt a familiar chill run down my spine. It wasn't fear; I already felt fear inside of me. This feeling was something else. It was a chill that ran through my entire body. My breathing slowed and my heart slowly went back to normally beating. I slowly laid Haru down onto the ground. I looked at his motionless body once before turning to face the two vampires. My breathing calmed and my hands remained at my side. "Alright,"I said. "I'll give." The two looked at each other and the unarmed one walked closer to me.

As if on instinct, I reached behind my back and threw out a Ruger Redhawk 5033 and fired two shots. Both struck the two men in the chest, throwing them onto the ground. I quickly ran over and fired two more shots into both their heads. All that was left was a bloody mess until for some reason their bodies combusted into flame and ash. "What-?" I suddenly felt fear rush through my body yet again as I dropped my gun. Although old habits die hard, I presumed I was just lucky that I illegally had a gun on me in Japan. However, I wasn't focused on that; those two bodies just disappeared. Were they really vampires?

The fire grew and the smoke started filling my lungs. I grabbed my gun and started reloading it with the last six bullets I had on me. No doubt others heard the shots and I had to get out of here fast. I saw a motorcycle, still intact and ready to be used. I looked back at Haru's body, still lifeless and dead. More tears grew from my eyes as I couldn't help but keep staring at him.

I suddenly heard the marching of boots advance towards me. I looked behind me and saw an army approaching me. I muttered a curse as I grabbed the gun and frantically ran towards the bike. I looked back at Haru's body again. Covered in his own blood, his body laid on the smoldering rubble of the building. The light of the flames glowed off of him, giving me one last good look at him. More tears started streaming down my face; I wanted to go back for him. However, it was too late. The army was coming and I had to move.

Beside me, I heard and saw the world end around me. The day after tonight, I woke up to a dead world haunted by monsters.


	2. Under the Belt

Under the Belt

I broke into yet another apartment building. At this point after a year and a half of hiding since the Great Blaze, I was finally exploring more of the outside of Tokyo's borders in search of supplies that I desperately needed. Inside, I scavenged enough canned food for a week, a few water bottles, and a new knife. No ammo for the .22 Mare's Leg, the 1911, or the .357 Ruger (the rifle was found in a museum and was the only gun I found that wasn't taken by the vampires), but I still had enough to stop any human attacker...if there ever was one.

I stuck closer to the buildings when running back to the garage at War Boy's. Giant monsters prowled the wasteland, hungry for any human caught dead in their tracks. If that wasn't enough, vampires apparently existed as well. Coming out only at night, I encountered a lone vampire when I found the rifle. His face was pale white and his eyes-those blood red eyes-glared at me with ferocious hunger. They were militarized; he wore a white uniform with a white cloak and black thigh-high boots, far different than the darker cloaks that the others wore during the Great Blaze. He wore a sword on his left hip.

We stood glaring at each other for a long minute, trying to see if the other one flinched. I barely had enough time to take him down. He was faster than a speeding bullet; he nearly sliced me in half with a longsword but a rifle bullet got to his chest first. He kept coming at me though, a .22 not being able to take him down, but I took him down after three shots, realizing that a headshot finally stunned him. I grabbed a sledgehammer and brought it down on his head, destroying it. He disappeared in a cloud of burnt ash just as I left, knowing that more would soon come. Already, I heard the stomping of the giant monsters closing in on my location. There was no way anything I had could even hurt the monsters that hunted me down that night.

I returned to the garage, the safest place I found ever since my old apartment was broken into. Most of the cars were gone, except for mine and Haru's. Luckily, there was still enough untouched gasoline, oil, coolant and supplies to maintain the Lusus Naturae. I only used it as a quick getaway car, instead only resorting to running to get around. I tracked down Michael's car-Michael living only a few kilometers away from the garage, and found it in a massive wreck. I harvested the supercharger and other scrap in order to bulk up my engine. Twin superchargers, while seemingly pointless in design, theoretically increased the power of the engine. Three kill-switches were placed inside to keep the car safe from other scavengers...if there were any still left out there. I was doubtful any kids that the vampires didn't abduct could even manage to drive the Lusus Naturae.

For the entire year, no one crossed my path. Every now and then there would be vampires and I assumed they were all looking for me. I contemplated the thought of being hunted every day. I hated it-the last adult human on Earth for some ungodly reason, hunted for eternity. There were times when my Ruger looked friendly to me.

Meanwhile, I was busy prepping the car to move. The two custom gas tanks that kept the car running for a good 22 miles to the gallon were being filled up with the remaining gas I had. Later I would have to pack what little food and water I had left and leave for Nagoya, a possible safe zone.

I reached for the can of gas. A cold hand suddenly grabbed my own hand. I looked up to see Haru. "What're you doing?"

I growled under my breath; I knew it wasn't him. "Screw off. I ain't got time for you today."

"Aww come ON! I thought you loved me?"

"What do you want?"I growled.

"Whatcha doin'!?"

"If you really must know-"I said as I started tying down the supplies in the back with ropes and chains. "-I decided to run...but, you already know that."

I turned around but was pinned against the car by Haru's playful grasp. "Oh? How so?"

I groaned as I pushed him off of me. "For the millionth time in a row, you demented piece of shit...you're not Haru-you're not my boyfriend! You're just some stuck up hallucination. You died in that fire."

He giggled and wrapped himself around me. "I'm real, Timii-chan-"

"-you're not."

"I'm not just one of those cheap parlor tricks you showed me. To be honest, they were pretty boring."

I growled under my breath, telling myself it was all just my mind; I tried distracting myself by grabbing more supplies from the office.

"The mind plays tricks on the vulnerable. Even the fastest Gun in the West has his own regrets."

"I'm not the fastest."

"Why do you keep saying that. Every time you keep saying that I lose more and more interest in you."

"Then fucking leave already. We've already been at this since you first crawled out of my nightmares a year ago."

"You don't want any alone time with your boyfriend?"

"You're not my boyfriend."

He got in my face, staring me down with his beautiful eyes. His demented image might have been tormenting me daily, but just the sight of him made me cringe. He smiled and kissed me in the lips; his cold touch sent shivers down my spine. A blazing heat, a fire that consumed everything in its path, radiated across me. The smell of blood and smoke filled my lungs. I growled and shook it off.

"If I'm not your boyfriend, then tell me,"Haru maliciously smiled.

I growled under my breath; I was of the superstitious sort.

"I thought so,"he said in a playful tone. "I'll always be with you, y'know? Your growling isn't a good way to make conversation with me-'

Tired of his games, I drew my pistol and pointed it at him. He vanished. As much as his image continued to haunt me, I had to stay focused on getting out of this city. The destination was Kara's compound; there was no way her underground Doomsday Bunker was infiltrated by the vampires even if they were in Nagoya, but they mostly stayed underground in the day. Along with loads of weapons, there was enough food, water, and supplies to last a family of four for up to three months. I already knew how to get inside and how to operate it, making the bunker a viable place to survive in. I loaded the rest of my supplies in the car, tied it all down with rope and chain before leaving.

The Lusus Naturae was more than capable of making the journey to Nagoya; the problem that laid ahead of me was the fact that past earthquakes, destruction, and monsters would impede the roads that had been laid before me. I had to account for the many detours and even improvised roads to get to Nagoya.

* * *

I had to admit it; the open road felt good to finally drive on. A sense of rush and adrenaline overshadowed my feelings of dread and the morbid shadow of an untimely death. 90 miles an hour kept my nerves calm and everything was going smoothly, until Haru appeared. He sat in the passenger's seat, gazing at me with his own eyes. I sighed to myself and clutched the wheel, annoyed in my own predictions on what he would say next.

"Having fun for once?"he sheepishly asked.

"Yeah, a few seconds ago. What do you want now?"

"I thought that if you saw me next to you again you would feel even better."

I looked at him before looking back at the road. "Nope...I don't feel anything.."

"Interesting." He ran his finger down my chest. "How about now-"

I whipped around to push him off of me. I looked back and immediately saw an incoming vehicle going straight towards me. I jerked the wheel back, slammed on the brakes, and narrowly avoided the car, instead running down derelict trash cans that piled on the street. The car's tires made a large screeching noise on the pavement as the Lusus Naturae mildly crashed its right side on another destroyed derelict car. An airbag exploded in my face shortly after impact.

Angry and muttering hateful phrases, I punched the airbag back and opened the car door before falling onto the asphalt below me. Groaning, I heard the tires of other vehicles grinding on the asphalt ahead of me. I stumbled up to my knees and saw two cloaked figures exit the car, a military jeep. My heart sank as I saw their faces.

Vampires.

They immediately rushed over to me and pushed me back up. They unsheathed their swords and pointed their tips at my throat. I put my hands up, my heart and breathing accelerating due to the rush of adrenaline and fear.

"You, human. Give up your weapons."

There was no way I could quickly draw my revolver without dying. "Fine."

I slowly undid my belt and tossed over the holstered revolver and my knife. One of the two vampires grabbed it and the other approached me. "What about that?"

He was referring to the lump on my jacket; an idea suddenly popped in my head. It was going to be one hell of a shot, but if it worked, I saw a possibility to get out in one piece.

"Oh? Those are my cards." I took out a nearly complete deck of playing cards. "Gentlemen, I believe we all got off on the wrong foot here. Please, before you kill me, allow me to show you just one last card trick. Magic was my favorite hobby."

They looked annoyed. "A magic trick? Are you serious?"

"You already have me at sword point,"I said as I rolled up my sleeves. "What have you got to lose? It's a waste of time, I know, but it will be quick and fun, I promise. After this...you...can do what you want from me."

They looked at each other; I could sense no emotion from them, . "Fine, but make it quick."

I fanned out the deck in front of them. "No problem, sir. Just pick a card. Any card. Commit that card into memory."

One of them grabbed a card.

"Now push it anywhere in the deck. Sir in the back, keep your sword trained on me and keep in mind you can see both my hands."

The card-bearer pushed his card into the middle of the deck.

"Alright, I'm gonna do a few cuts, a shuffle here...and there...so now there is no possible way I can know what your card is. However..."

I picked up the card from the top of the newly formed deck.

"Is this your card?"

They looked at it. "That is not my card. Quit wasting our time!"

One of them grew closer and smacked the deck away from my hand. The other went to grab for my throat.

"Whoa-whoa-whoa, guys-"I said, backing up. "Now, I'm all down for you to drain me but sadly, you didn't let me finish."

With a flick of the wrist, a card popped out of my hand.

"Your card was the King of Diamonds, now wasn't it?" I showed them the card.

They looked at each other, lowering their swords.

"That was-"

I drew my 1911 and fired two rounds into both of their heads when they were distracted. I quickly ran up to the vampire with my revolver and grabbed it, firing an extra shot into their heads, killing them. They vaporized in a cloud of smoke, leaving behind traces of their white uniforms. The shots rang out through the buildings. The road became silent.

I gasped for air and nearly fell down; I was so close to dying. I started coughing, dropping down to my hands and knees-the start of yet another asthma attack. Trying to slow down my breathing, I started taking deep and long breaths to calm myself down. I ran out of inhaler juice since three months ago and just trying not to die from choking was harder than escaping vampires and giant monsters. When I managed to calm down, I hurriedly grabbed my gun belt and wiped my face with a rag, still woozy from the heavy breathing.

There were probably more vampires to come, so I decided to salvage what I can and get back to driving. A hose was inserted into the jeep's gas tank, the other end inside a jerry can. After sucking down the hose, allowing for the gas to rush into the can, I grabbed the two deceased vampires' swords and threw them in the car before checking out the rest of the jeep. There was nothing of use; I was expecting to find at least a few lone rifle rounds or even a rifle. I looked inside my revolver cylinder. There were only two more rounds left; I loaded the last of my ammo in the cylinder to fill it. I ran out on the Mare's Leg and the 1911 had two clips left.

Suddenly, I heard the roar of jeeps behind me from across the street. I muttered a curse before running over to the jerry can. It was too late; another military jeep came driving over to my location. I quickly ducked behind the salvaged jeep and rolled into the derelict building.

Hiding on top of the rafters of the building, I held my breath as I heard the stepping of boots come closer and closer. Two people walked inside, not noticing how I was above them.

They were different; they almost looked human. In fact, I was pretty sure they were human. It didn't make sense-they looked older than the suggested 13-year old cap off age for the virus. They looked to be around the ages of eighteen, maybe. They wore black military uniforms, as opposed to the vampires' white uniforms and cloaks. One of them also had a katana on them while the other didn't appear to have any weapon. They seemed to be conversing with each other in Japanese instead of Latin or English.

I could already hear Haru's voice in my head saying that it seemed that I "wasn't the last human on Earth." A feeling of joy hit me-I smiled just seeing them-but I then remembered that survivors of an Apocalypse can have mixed feelings about other survivors. They could be a Cult. The language barrier alone could mess with my good intentions. I looked to my right and saw a dangling cord. Time to make an entrance.

I grabbed enough cord to throw over the unarmed soldier and lasso her up towards the rafters, using her as a counter-weight as I made a slow descent down. The wire wrapped around her arms and trapped her, leaving me with the other soldier. I had my revolver trained on him and the girl just as the man unsheathed his katana.

"Drop it,"I ordered, pointing to the katana.

He looked at the girl, who was struggling to get free, before throwing the sword at my feet.

I kicked it to the next room.

"English?"I resorted to only a few words.

"Yes."

"Who are you?"

"Calm down, sir. You don't have to point your gun at me."

More people appeared outside the doorway. Shocked, they took out their own weapons. Some were conventional, some were wielding katanas and bows, but others had weapons that seemed unconventional to me if they were going to fight a vampire. One soldier, a red-haired girl, wielded large gauntlets that wrapped around her fist and forearm. Another had what looked like a large smoking pipe embroidered in gold. None of them had any firearms, but they looked ready to pounce.

I stopped the first soldier from getting any closer. "Hold it,"I ordered. "Are you the leader?"

"Yes."

"Who are you?" I tried steadying my pistol, making sure they don't notice the fear running through me still.

"I am Lieutenant Colonel Guren Ichinose-"

"LTC? JSDF?" It could be them.

"No, we're part of the Japanese Imperil Demon Army-"

That part threw me off. "Demon Army? Just what kinda-"

I quickly dodged a swipe from the girl suspended in the air, who suddenly had a sword in her hands. It looked different-it seemed to be made of paper. Assessing the situation, they were a danger. I gripped the revolver with both of my hands and pointed it at the advancing soldiers.

"Freeze! I'll shoot,"I roared.

I didn't want to take another human life, but I didn't want them to take mine either. However, they didn't listen and soon rushed towards me. I let out two warning shots, allowing me to quickly run into the building. I closed the door behind me before quickly jumping out of the window. The soldiers, realizing I was now halfway to my car, started running towards me. The were shouting at me, but I couldn't make any sense of it.

I closed the car door before quickly inputting the correct kill-switch sequence and turning on the ignition. An arm reached inside the car window, trying to grab at my right hand, which was turning on the ignition. However, he failed to stop me. I quickly shifted the car to Reverse before slamming on the accelerator. The man was torn away from the window as the Lusus Naturae sped out away from them.

I thought I was free from them after that, until a soldier made his way from behind me. He grabbed me by the throat with both of his arms.

"Stop the car!"he ordered.

"You're not getting me!"

I took my foot off the accelerator. I tried ripping away the man's grip on me, but he wouldn't budge. I could feel myself losing consciousness; I gasped heavily for air, but couldn't get any. My hand hurriedly reached for my revolver and pointed it behind me. I pulled the trigger, the gun discharging only a few inches away from me. I heard a scream and the man let go of his grip. He fell down onto the ground as the car stopped, my foot stepping on the brake. I dropped the gun, gripping my ear. I couldn't hear anything; a loud ringing of the gun deafened my right ear. The blast alone scorched my ear and hair.

I turned to my left and looked at the person. He was clutching his bloody wound before collapsing onto a pool of his own blood. The rest of the soldiers were running at us from across the street. I turned back to the man, who I knew was dead. I just killed him.

"Oh damn..."I shuddered.

I backed the car up, switching back to Drive before speeding out of there. I maneuvered around from street corner to street corner, not remembering where I was going. I found an entrance to the Highway, taking it to gain more distance from the soldiers. After only a minute of driving on the highway, I slammed on the brakes just enough to where the car barely stopped on the edge of a broken part of the highway.

Still gripping on the wheel with all of my strength, I laid my forehead on the top part of the wheel. I closed my eyes, still unable to hear from my right ear. The ringing didn't stop. The high-pitched ringing was suddenly accompanied by a man's screaming. I hit my forehead against the wheel multiple times, trying to get the noise out of my head. Tears ran down my eyes; I scrunched up my face as I was overwhelmed by the noise.

What if it was a misunderstanding?

"What have I done?"I asked myself.

"What you're good at,"said a voice.

"I'm not a killer..."

"Tombstone."

I stepped outside the car and slammed my head against its shell, finally getting rid of the voice. Losing all sense of survivability, I cowered onto the ground, covering my eyes with my arms. That was the third one, an inevitability I could not have comprehended would happen. They didn't even look like Wastelanders from movies-they looked as organized as a military. What if it was just a misunderstanding?

I desperately wanted to go back, my heart not being able to carry the burden of yet another person under my belt, but they would kill me on sight now. He was dead, and there was nothing that could be done about it.

I stepped inside my car, and drove it towards Nagoya as the sun set.


	3. Lassoed

**Author's Note: This story is slow-it's not a Western where the gunslinger kills everyone he sees...at least, not yet**

* * *

Lassoed

I hurriedly ate the last cracker I had before covering myself yet again with my blanket. I was finally in Nagoya just as the snow set in and my food ran out. All I needed to do now was to find Kara's underground bunker. She lived on the outskirts of the capital city.

The entire journey before Nagoya lasted nearly three days of backtracking, food shortages and cold weather. I barely had the gas to keep going and Haru's short appearances were now actually appreciated for the warmth that radiated from him. However, I noticed that upon entering Nagoya, the Horsemen attacks seemed to stop. I kept being chased by monsters of colossal sizes, but they seemed to stop. There were no sign of Horsemen anywhere.

After half a day of searching in a weird winter storm, I found her house in the capital city. It sat just outside the city, inside a large wall that surrounded a desolate garden. I remembered firing wax bullets from my Peacemaker in her sound-proof basement.

It looked like Kara's garden failed, but what of her Doomsday Shelter? I found its heavy steel door down a staircase. It was a safe door with a giant locker wheel combination. Luckily, I knew the combination.

Inside was dark; the light switch wouldn't work. I then remembered her saying that the entire place was running under a generator inside the facilities room. I filled it with gas and to my amazement it still worked. Back at the shelter, the lights lit up a room the size of a large Dining Hall. Refrigerators, storage chests, lockers, beds and supplies lined the outside of the place. All was untouched. I then felt the heaters giving off a warm gush of air as I closed the door, locking it behind me.

The first thing I did was take a shower. The water was clean and warm, thanks to an industrial water heater and a purification unit. A sense of joy rushed around me; I was loudly singing in the shower.

I clothed myself with fresh clothes and ran towards the refrigerator. I drank the first beer I had since the Apocalypse. I ate from an MRE as I did a detail on the storage bins and closets. Most had dry food, canned goods, clothes, medical and office supplies, but one cabinet, a long metal cabinet, held something much more amazing.

It was a gun rack. All that was inside was a Winchester 1903 Shotgun, two Sig Sauers, a HOWA Type 64, a Hunting Rifle, and a gun I never expected to see ever again. The Fast Draw Peacemaker.

"Long time no see, ol' girl,"I told myself, admiring the Peacemaker.

As much as I enjoyed seeing it, touching it made me feel an anxious feeling in my gut. It was like I could smell the stench of gunpowder mixed with dry sand. I felt an unbearable heat for a moment, but ended when I accidentally tipped over a rifle in my stumbling. I brushed it off, going back to detailing. I looked at the revolver and ran my hand across its barrel.

The .45 Colt Peacemaker was my speciality. I didn't know how Kara got her hands on it, but she somehow imported my specially-crafted Fast Draw-modified Peacemaker to Japan. The hammer was replaced with one that moved the thumb lever up for fanning. The front sights were removed and the insides were tuned up with the addition of blocks. The Bird's Head grip was solid silver, the gun a shining chrome. Although it used only .45 Long Colt rounds, there was enough here for a small army. Everything else was just as good, if not better. I could last in this bunker for years regardless.

That night, I stood outside the house with a bottle of imported Scotch. I took a swig before draining half of the bottle on the ground.

"Kyrrðu í friði, Kara,"I said in Icelandic, holding a dictionary in my hand. "Til Valhall."

I slept comfortably with the bunker door locked and my weapons next to me. Multiple blankets and the remaining Scotch made the night better. I slept soundly, until I felt a familiar hand reach out from behind me and ruffled through my hair.

"You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams,"Haru whispered in my ear.

"I was actually very much asleep, thank you." I welcomed his hand though; call me crazy, but I enjoyed him for now. I could feel his warmth, smell his flagrant scent.

"How are you holding up? Three more under the belt, interesting."

"I'd rather not think about it,"I murmured.

* * *

I opened my eyes at what I could only perceive as early morning. It was another fit of sleep paralysis, the scariest thing that could happen to me other than another asthma attack. Usually in sleep paralysis, the person affected's body isn't awake but their mind is. The person's mind hallucinates beyond REM and reality and soon the person sees things that weren't really there. Usually for me, I would see Haru standing next to me. I would try my damnest to break free just to see him disappear.

This time was different. Not only was there a different figure-I didn't feel the need to wake up quick, fast and in a hurry. The figure was blurrier than usual, but I could tell he was familiar. It looked so real too; once he came into focus, I could tell he wore a face that I never really thought I would see ever again. It was Crowley Eusford.

It was funny, at first, because I didn't really think about him as much, Ferid more so than Crowley. Crowley I thought of as a good friend-great, even-but I didn't really think about him at all during the Apocalypse until I saw him staring right at me with those red eyes of his. It brought on so many feelings, but something was causing me to wake up.

I closed my eyes and opened them again, trying to wriggle my fingers and toes to waken my body. After maybe five minutes of internally struggling, I finally awoke completely. He was still there.

"Oh shit, I must be hallucinating!"I laughed to myself.

"T-Tim-san!? You're alive?"Crowley asked, surprised.

I thought for a moment on his puzzled reaction. I smiled to myself. "No...you can't be...nah I don't believe it...oh God, you really are real!?"

I hurriedly got up, holding his arms; he looked and sounded real. I chuckled heartily and wrapped my arms around him. He was cold, as usual, and somewhat stiff, but I still felt a sense of familiarity and security from him. It was a feeling I have missed in a long time. I must have held onto him for a good five minutes; I almost wanted to kiss him. He didn't even budge, but I could tell he was somewhat glad to see me. He patted me on the head.

"Your hair got long,"he said.

"Crowley...oh, it's so good to see a familiar face,"I said. "A week ago, I thought I couldn't trust another human being."

"What?"He seemed confused.

"I messed up...there were these guys-humans-and they called themselves the 'Demon Army'. There was a misunderstanding...and I killed one of them. Here-"I got up and moved back the bangs near my right ear. "-the shot nearly deafened my ear and took a bit off the earlobe. The blast singed it."

"Uh...Tim-kun..."

"They were armed, and for over a year I was alone, so you have to understand how paranoid I was. Now, they're probably looking for me...wanting to take revenge."

"I'm...sorry to hear that." His tone was the same calm, but also confused, sound I was used to hearing. "How many people have you killed?"

"...what kind of man asks another man how many he has killed?"I said, almost disappointed. "He was the only one. As for vamps-"

"-you killed vampires before?" He sounded surprised.

"Around 5 or 6. It was hard. They were fast as lightning-faster than me. Funny story: the last two I killed I had my revolver taken away and I managed to distract them with a magic trick, so I can reach my other pistol."

"That's...an interesting story."

I looked back at Crowley as I was grabbing a bottled water from a supply chest. Something about his expression told me that he was honestly confused about something.

"What's wrong, mate, it looks like you've seen a ghost?"I said. "N-Now I know I wasn't someone that you were expecting, but it is me. And...I got fresh water, so, let's celebrate!"

I threw him the bottle, but he stood still. The bottle landed in a loud thud on the ground next to him.

Annoyed, I sighed, "Something wrong?"

"Well...I'm glad that you're alive and well, but can't you see it?"

"See what?"

Crowley smiled after letting out a slight sigh. "For the fastest and most accurate gunslinger in the world, you sure are unobservant."

"I still don't...wait...how did you get in here?"

The door was wide open, the latch broken. I turned back to Crowley to question him, but he suddenly stepped closer to me. I nervously chuckled and tried backing up, but his face grew closer to mine.

Pointed ears.

Red eyes.

White fangs barely sticking from behind the top lip.

A white uniform with a purple cape and black right arm sleeve.

A sword sheathed on his left hip.

I took another step back, double-taking to make sure I wasn't seeing things. He was one of them: a vampire. I then noticed two others step inside the bunker, both vampires.

"Oh...I must be hallucinating. You know, you-you ain't the first friendly looking face that torments me at night."

He smirked and laid both of his hands on my shoulder, staring right into my face with an awkward smile. He licked his lips, showing off his white fangs.

"Oh...this is not good."

An incredible rush of adrenaline overwhelmed me. As if instinct, my left hand grabbed for my Ruger, which was on the bedpost next to me. But, before my hand could even move, Crowley pinned me down on the bed in a matter of a second. I felt the blunt blow of the bed colliding with my back and shoulders; I struggled and tried tearing myself away from his hands, but the level of strength he exerted was growing stronger and stronger. The weight of his body alone made me stay still. Pretty soon, it felt as if my bones were about to crack from the sheer force of his grip. I cried out in pain before looking back at him.

"What're you doing?"I yelped. "I-I thought..."

"I've never seen that face before! Hold still, little livestock."

"Livestock!?"

"And a dangerous one at that. Now, be a good boy and relax. If you keep struggling, I might end up killing you."

Not a second sooner, he placed his hand over my mouth, forcing my head to the right, and sunk his fangs into my exposed neck. The pain was excruciating, sending me through vicious agony. I screamed in Crowley's gloved hand, wriggling for my freedom. However, I couldn't move. With every second, my pain multiplied ten-fold, making for an excruciating torture. I couldn't think straight, my instincts telling me to try and throw Crowley off of me. Obviously, I couldn't. Every struggle made me weaker, and I was shortly incapacitated, nearly falling limp in Crowley's grasp.

I fell unconscious, the last thing being seen by my closing eyes being Crowley shoving a towel on my neck.

* * *

Apparently, Nagoya was, in reality, a hotspot of vampire activity. A lot of the Vampire Nobles, including Crowley Eusford, had taken up residence in key points around the Prefecture, Crowley residing in the old Town Hall.

As for me, when I blacked out from blood loss, I was immediately given basic medical care before being chained inside of an old Police Station's jail cell. The bunker, my supplies and my car were raided and given to Crowley. Now all that was left was the decision on what to do with me.

They left me with nothing but the clothes on my back and a small ration of canned food that came three times a day to keep me alive. Nights were long, cold and harsh. I could barely sleep. For nearly half of a week, they kept me in that dank cell, making me rot in the frost. Haru never appeared, leaving me without even imaginary warmth.

I couldn't allow myself to suffer. I tore a chunk of the cracked floor and looked into it. Just one forceful swing and it would all end. There was no way I could get out of this alive.

Just as I tore it out, the sound of boots came from down the hall. I quickly dropped the rock and faced the people coming. It was Crowley and his aides, Chess and Horn. They were the rulers of Nagoya, Crowley being a thirteenth progenitor and his aides the fifteenth.

"What the hell do I even call you?"I asked.

Crowley signaled for his aides to wait outside, just outside of hearing range. "I thought you were dead." He gave me a cup of unknown liquor, which I drank quickly upon receiving it. I groaned from the burning in my throat, but was satisfied by the taste.

"Why are you doing this to me? I thought we were friends!?"I frantically asked.

"I thought your definition of a friend was when someone drank and ate ten times a normal human would along with you?"

"A-Are you serious, man. Other than Haru and Kara, I thought of you as, like, my Number Three. Shit! Why would you do this to me?!"

"You were going to try and kill me."

"No, I wasn't...I just couldn't believe you were-w-were you a vampire before this?"

"Yes."

"Why are you holding me here?"

Crowley gripped the cage bars. "I still don't know how much of a danger you really are. I already know what you can do with just a simple hair pin."

I scoffed. "It's gonna take a lot more than a hair pin to kill you."

Crowley sighed. "Case and point."

Dumbfounded of my own stupidity, I leaned on the bars. "Crowley...you know I can't kill you. Not only are you too powerful...but, you're the only somewhat friendly face I've seen in a long time."

"You mentioned a group called the 'Demon Army', right?"

"Yeah...maybe it wasn't such a good idea to hogtie one of 'em."

"How many of them were there?"he asked.

"...five...maybe ten? I even met their LTC."

He smiled. "So, an army that saw you as a threat because you hogtied one of their own...an interesting story indeed.

I looked back at Crowley. He looked exactly the same as before the Apocalypse. He looked calm, collected, and a lot more fleshed out than the vampires that hunted me back in Tokyo. Maybe I could stoke up some old cinders of our friendship to get me out of this cell.

"Let me go, mate. I don't go actively hunting your kind-everything was strictly self defense. You show me a place that's not full of vampires and I'll leave you all alone, I swear to you."

He snickered and pulled out a key. "I can't do that Tim-kun." He unlocked the cage and slowly pushed me against the wall.

"W-why not?"I said, shocked.

He put his hands behind my neck and wrapped a nearly tight-fitting leather collar around me. I muttered a curse in tagalog before looking back at him. Crowley's red eyes gazed into my own. I let out a mild groan of confusion as he slowly undid my shirt collar and vest. His face hovered just half-an inch from mine; I could barely look him in the eye.

"I decided that you're my trophy now," he said. "The Second Fastest Gun in the West as my trophy; how delightful. You'll do what I say and if that means I want your blood-" He opened my unbuttoned shirt and moved the collar up my neck. "-I'll take it."

"W-Wait-"I shoved my hands on his chest, but he didn't even so much as budge.

"-what?"he asked, annoyed.

"I'll die if you take another sip. I can barely stand. You've been feeding me nothing but bread and canned meat."

He took a look at me and groaned. He placed his teeth around my neck, just enough to where I could feel the sharpness of his fangs slightly puncturing my neck as my pulse increased. He hummed softly to himself, probably deciding if he wanted to take a drink regardless of my objection.

He looked back up. "Fine, but you remain by my side now. If you try to escape, I'll break your legs."

I groaned in annoyance, but was relieved of his last decision. "Sure...do I still have to live here?"

"No, I have a different arrangement for you."

His idea of a "different arrangement" was an office room inside the Town Hall. I was given a bed, some of my clothes, and a few books from the bunker. My weapons were clearly gone, maybe destroyed or stored.

My task, as directed by Crowley, was to now fix generators lying around Nagoya as well as shovel snow from the roads and buildings and into designated areas. At all times, a vampire or two watched me to make sure I wasn't straying off or killing anyone. Looking around, there were only vampires; as far as I knew, I was the only human there.

I heard rumors spread. They were asking questions on how an adult male survived the Apocalypse Virus: the virus that killed off anyone above the age of thirteen. Theories passed on from vampire to vampire; some theories included that I was a spy from religious organizations or that magic itself was used to immunize myself. I, myself, knew the best reason was due to a natural immunity an organism could have for any disease. Turns out I qualified, whether for better or worse.

Either way, they still looked down on me. To a vampire, a human was nothing more than livestock and should be treated as such. The guards would push me around from place to place, always telling me to hurry up. The only difference for me was that I was getting what most would consider "luxury" nowadays. I would still have a sleep schedule from 10 to 6, but work would last all day to make up for the extra treatment they had to give me to survive. To add on to that, being Crowley's slave meant that he would feed off of me whenever he felt like it; he would even "walk" me via the leash around my neck.

While the generators weren't as much of a problem as I thought, snow was consistently rampant as I kept trying to shovel it from the roads. That was my routine for hours on end for the next eight or so weeks, up until one fateful night.

I was getting ready for bed; a last drink of water and a few pages of Jack London and I was ready to call it a night. I found reading and logging down my thoughts ever since day thirty of the Apocalypse to keep me saner than talking to Haru, who now would only watch with melancholy whenever I shoveled snow or fixed a generator. I ignored the visions, knowing the vampires would treat me worse if they thought I was crazy or delusional. Haru would only crawl up from behind me in bed and just cover my back. He did the same for tonight, only this time he talked.

"Betrayal,"he said.

I grunted.

"He betrayed you."

I groaned in anger. "I can see that. A few years ago I was his friend and now...I'm his blood bag. I thought I meant something to him."

"I'm sorry..."

I turned to face him. "That's...don't. Nothin' I could do now."

"If only there was a car that could drive faster than a Lamborghini at top speed..."

"I don't even know where it is...if it's even in one piece still."

"Then find out. They have you all over the place. Maybe it's right-"

The door suddenly opened and Haru disappeared. I jumped up, throwing my blanket off of me, and looked at the open door. It was Chess Bell and Horn Skuld, Crowley's aides.

"Get up, human,"Horn ordered.

"What's goin' on?"I asked.

"Get up." She stomped over and forcefully pulled on my leash.

They led me towards the Mayor's office, where Crowley sat and waited. His two aides marched me towards a chair and sat me down right in front of the Thirteenth Progenitor. In between us was a desk with a typewriter and a ream of paper.

"Good evening, Tim-kun!"he greeted cheerfully. "How are you!"

"So far, so good, I guess. I thought you drank me yesterday. I got wounds all over my neck and arms."

"No, actually...I was thinking that you can help me type something."

"W-w-like what?"

"A report."

"...about what exactly?"

"Well, basically all I have to do is...summarize these other reports and on the other Nobles' reports and the yield of incoming activity of humans and monsters."

"And what is my involvement in all of this?"

"Lord Crowley's reports in the past..."Horn started,"...were somewhat unsatisfactory when received by the Queen."

"It was too general and unclear,"Chess added.

"Dear God, it couldn't have been that bad?"I said. "I mean, it's not like anything really happens around here."

Crowley passed me his first draft of the report and after reading it, it became clear to me why it was rejected.

"Hmm...okay...yeah, I can see why..."

He smiled. "Will you do it?"

"I-" It looked simple, but maybe I could push a small deal. "-what happened to my car? I'll write your report if I know where my car is. Come on, man, I put years of work into that monster."

"You didn't see it? It's still in the garage of the house next door."

"W-really?!"

"Don't think about escaping. I'll be watching you."

In my first week here, I was always searching for any opportunity to escape. The closest I got was when the vampire guards were switching shifts and left me near a derelict car. I managed to break in and cautiously hot-wire it, only to be ambushed by Chess and Horn. Horn took out her whip and lashed it around my waist, throwing me against a pile of snow. I still had the scars her whip made.

Feeling the past burning pain of Horn's whip scars, I groaned, "Okay, fine. Just give me the typewriter."

"Oh, can you actually...sit here?"

Even his aides looked shocked.

"What?"I asked, bewildered.

He sighed and got up from his chair before walking towards me. He lifted me up like I was just a sack of potatoes and sat me back on his lap as he sat back down on his chair.

"There. Type."

Crowley wrapped his arms around my waist and rested his head on my right shoulder. I turned to question him, but was immediately disengaged once his red eyes met my own. I grunted softly before examining the other reports and Nobles' comments. Going off what they were saying I based "Crowley's Report" off of theirs. It was just like the monthly, weekly and daily yields and orders I had to do back at the garage, only more high-risk.

The typewriter alone was hard to use. A small bucket of white paint was used to correct a mistake. As I typed, I made sure with Crowley about yields and actual facts, but most of the time when I was typing silently, he just licked my neck and gnawed on my collar. It wasn't until I felt a warm drip that I realized he pricked a small cut on my neck and was licking the blood off of it. Chess and Horn, meanwhile, were observing me type. Once in a while I caught a glimpse of them glaring at me as if they were jealous. I tried making myself focus on the report, making sure to greatly "enhance" Crowley's words.

I was finally done within two hours of typing, giving the report to Crowley for him to sign off on. Almost immediately after handing him the report, I slowly fell asleep as he was observing the report. I could hear him express his gratitude for a better report and woke me back up to thank me. He yanked me back to him by grabbing forcefully on my collar.

"Good job, Tim-kun!"

I snickered, tired from the lack of sleep. "Thanks bro. Anything else?"

"Do you want to sleep up here?" My room was in the lower floors but the office was high up in the tower.

I was afraid they would feed on me while I slept. There was an earlier incident where Chess and Horn nearly killed me when Crowley allowed the two to feed on me. "Oh...y'know what. It's fine bro. I just need a drink..."

I stood up but my legs couldn't support me; I remembered sitting in a position where my legs fell asleep. I nearly fell down if it wasn't for Crowley catching me.

"How about I just take you down there."

I closed my eyes and smiled. "Thanks man, you-you're a good friend."

* * *

I knocked out after we stepped out of the office but Crowley did manage to get me back to my room. When I awoke, I was also surprised to find him still wrapped around me with his eyes closed. I quietly checked my neck but I found no fresh marks. His entire body was lukewarm, but for some reason it felt almost comfortable. (A/N: OOC much?)

For once, I felt comfortable near him again, like it was the old days before the Apocalypse. I would wager now that I felt almost safe in his arms. I could almost fall back asleep right now if I wanted to; I laid my head back against him, closing my eyes for a bit. He must've felt me wake up for he soon awoke afterwards and turned me around to face him.

"Awake yet?"he smiled.

"You slept with me? What'd you do?"

"You're so paranoid,"he sighed. "Nothing. I never noticed how warm you were."

"W-What?!"

Crowley put his hand over my mouth. "Calm down. You'll choke again."

I took his hand away. "Yeah, whatever."

Crowley closed his eyes. Even with his eyes closed, his general expression looked as if he was thinking about something-maybe, it was something he regretted thinking about. He opened his eyes and grabbed my collar.

"Can I show you somewhere?"

"Huh?"

Crowley led me to a familiar looking building that wasn't ravaged by the Great Blaze. Going inside, I discovered an indoor target range and electronic timer desks. I immediately knew where I was after looking around, looking at the familiar light wooden desks, black balloon holders and boxes of wax ammunition.

"Nagoya's Fast Draw Club...I remember teaching one class on Fast Draw and then breaking two of their guns on accident. Man...where did the time go."

Crowley handed me my Peacemaker back. "Can I see your trick again?"

I looked at the revolver. I smiled to myself as I remembered all of the stunts I pulled off with this gun. Despite its appearance, it must've been older than even my grandfather. I opened the loading gate and saw that it was already loaded. I groaned and took a bullet out, rotating the cylinder to where the hammer stopped at the empty cylinder.

For some reason, after de-cocking the pistol, I smelled blood and hot sand. I coughed and sneezed, finally smelling fresh air.

"You wanna see me fast draw?"I asked.

"Sure." Crowley didn't seem to notice the phase I just went through. He stood back with his two aides.

"Um...Lord Crowley-sama. Are you sure we can trust him with a loaded gun?"asked Chess.

"It seems too risky,"Horn added.

Ignoring them, I found a rig. Putting it around my waist, I holstered the pistol. The timer tables wouldn't work, but Crowley had his own pocket watch. Each target had a ten inch diameter in the middle; I blew up balloons and tied them behind the holes, making my targets. I stood eight feet back, stretching my hands before taking my pose. I leaned myself back, bending my knees to bring them a little forward. I whistled to Crowley, not taking my sight away from the target. My heart started beating rapidly.

"Say when,"I said.

"Ready?"

I nodded, hearing Crowley raise the timer to my ear.

A few seconds went by. "N-"

Before he could even say the first letter, I shot all five bullets at all five targets. I brought myself back up and opened the gun's loading gate, dropping all five smoldering hot brass casings on the ground. The smell of gunpowder lofted into my nose. The nostalgia with each breath brought back memories of the days where I was a champion. I stood back up, flipping my gun around my index finger before holstering it. I looked at all the targets. Each one had a bullet in its dead center. I looked back at Crowley, who looked at the time.

"You shot all of those targets in under a second!"

"A second divided by five is...what? Around .2 seconds a shot? I still got it."

"I thought I loaded six?" Crowley walked over and grabbed the pistol and my rig.

"You did, but I didn't want to shoot my own foot off."

I handed Crowley back the revolver and the sixth bullet. Upon receiving it, he put the revolver behind his back and threw the rig back on the floor.

Meanwhile, I looked at my right hand. I noticed that my hand was shaking almost uncontrollably. My breathing was a little rapid, but, in keeping my composure, I grabbed my right hand with my left, stopping the shaking. I sighed as Crowley grabbed my leash and led me out the door.

For the rest of my time in Nagoya, my work shifted from plowing snow to writing and receiving reports from the Nobles and Sanguinem, the city under Kyoto that held the Queen herself. My own sleep schedule shifted from nighttime to early morning and afternoon. Working on the reports also meant I had to deal with the Nobles themselves. They were ignorant, stubborn, and less than likely to even interact with me. The only reason I could stand the hatred from both the nobles, and my own hatred against them, was Crowley standing behind me. I wanted to believe that he was still my friend, always having my back if things went horribly wrong.

A while later, as per Crowley's allowance to me, I had access to the Lusus Naturae only if he and his aides drove with me. Looking over, I could see he wasn't use to driving in this kind of Rat Rod. In fact, he never drove in the Lusus Naturae until just recently. His aides looked worse; being how they had to sit in the back with no seats, they felt the majority of the road hitting the tires. Around me, everything I put in the car that was a weapon or excessive was taken out, except for the picture stand. I carefully unfolded a picture from my wallet and placed it on the stand; the picture was of me, Haru, Kara, and Crowley in War Boy's.

"Didn't I take that picture?"Crowley asked.

"Oh yeah, you did! Oh, those were the days...when I wasn't living off dried food and instead could eat all the shit I wanted to."

"How did you not die?"

"I don't know...I mean, probably most likely I had an immunity to it before it even started. That's how some people were immune to HIV. Do you know why this happened?"

He hesitated. "I can't spread that news to humans."

"Holy fucking shit it's that bad? Damn. I was just getting used to Japan, too."

"Does the engine have to be this loud?"he asked.

I laughed. "Not used to Hot Rods, eh?"

"It's so obnoxious,"Horn said.

"Why do we have to drive in this thing,"Chess added.

"Didn't you walk in with that one guy...Ferid, and grab the Impala? That thing was almost as loud,"I asked.

"He still makes me ride in that,"Crowley sighed."I even had to fix it for him at one point."

I was shocked. "He's alive!?"

"Oh yeah, he's a higher rank than me."

"Sonuvabitch...that would explain a lot. Y'know, I always thought you two were weird, but I swept it under the rug because you guys were such good friends."

"Stop with the flattery,"he smiled sarcastically. "Do you know where we're going?"

"Kyoto, right?"

"Yeah. He's gonna be there, y'know."

"Really? And what will I be doing? You ever really told me."

"Do you still know magic?"

"Of course I still know magic, but compared to you, it's all parlor tricks and cheating-not, immortality and super strength."

"Well, Ferid requires you to entertain the Second and Third Progenitors while we prepare-"

"-who?"

"The three highest ranking vampires. Our lords. While Krul, a third progenitor, is already controlling Japan...the Second Progenitor from Russia and Third Progenitor from Germany are overseeing her rule here personally."

"And Ferid thinks I can entertain them with simple card tricks? Card tricks?"

"Well..."

Crowley pulled out something from behind him. It was a wooden box with the London Armoury Company's Logo burned onto it, dating back since 1858. He opened it and inside was a LeMat Revolver with a silver grip. While the revolver appeared to be the same as the normal cap and ball version, it was far different than a normal LeMat; the cylinder was converted for .45 Long Colt, the cylinder custom made with a conversion piece and different mechanisms. The shotgun barrel stayed the same, most likely a buckshot black powder 20 gauge. The vampire insignia was etched into the silver butt of the gun on both sides. I whistled.

"That is one beautiful piece of metal,"I said. "Whose is it?"

"Ferid's."

It then clicked to me. "Oh no...no I'm not...I can't."

"You shot five bullets in under one seconds."

"I didn't want to do it! Besides, this is a LeMat. This thing is a pound heavier than the Colt. This will throw my speed off."

With one hand still on the wheel, I grabbed the pistol from his hand. I could see Crowley's two aides motion towards their weapons as I examined the LeMat. I tested the hammer, made sure to hear the mechanism click four times, shifted the hammer from pistol to shotgun and back, and even dry-fired the empty pistol and shotgun.

Another flash of heat hit me. I got itchy all over; I heard a gunshot, but my hand stayed firmly in place on the wheel. I shook my head and focused on the road. I spun the gun and gave it back to Crowley as fast as I could.

"So...card tricks and trick shooting. What? He wants me to dress up like a cowboy, too?"


	4. Sleight of Hand

**A/N: No! I do not own Owari No Seraph.**

* * *

Sleight of Hand

* * *

"You gotta be shitting me,"I muttered to myself as I straightened out my vest.

I didn't meet Ferid yet, but I definitely witnessed how insanely intricate his tastes were. Under Kyoto was a massive underground gothic city that acted as the vampire's main stronghold in Japan. The architecture, not taking into account the newly formed squatter towns, reminded me of a gothic Victorian-like city, complete with giant aquifers, rows of pipes that provided ventilation and plumbing, as well as the main buildings the vampires occupied. I had to drive carefully when inside; although there were roads, one wrong twitch and the car would go charging into a wall. The road led me to a giant mansion that luckily had enough space in the garage for me to park in. Next to us was the 1960 Red Impala. This was Ferid's mansion.

Inside his Study, Ferid left me a package of clothes to wear that stupidly made me look like a well-dressed gambler from the Wild West. Crowley, Chess, and Horn left me alone, most likely getting ready for the meeting. Alone, I kept making sure everything fit while cursing at Ferid mentally.

"Maybe I should just shoot you as a trick. 'The Incredible Disappearing Vampire,' I'll call it,"I grumbled to myself. "'What do you mean he's dead? He just disappeared is all'."

I wore a white dress shirt with a black ribbon tied around the collar that resembled a bowtie. Over was a black vest with silver buttons and two lower pockets, the right with a deck of cards inside and the left with a few silver dollars. I wore dark black dress pants that were close to being a tight fit. Inside its belt loops was a black leather belt and over that was a black rig that held the LeMat in a cross draw loop holster. I wore only one white glove that fitted around my left hand. Around my feet were a pair of socks under a pair of black leather cowboy boots.

"I do have to admit, though. I look fresh,"I said, combing my hair.

The door burst open and Ferid walked inside the room. Dressed in a flamboyant uniform, he closed the door quickly behind him, surprising me.

"Okay! Are we all ready to go~!"he asked.

"Ferid! You...you're not making me shoot a gun in front of your lords."

"And why not?"He sounded truthfully disappointed.

"Once they realize I can shoot, they'll see me as a threat and would want to kill me!"

"They won't do that!"he smiled.

He stepped over to me and started fixing my bow.

"And that's beside the point on why this is gonna be such a shit show,"I stuttered. "Vampires, such as yourself, naturally have better senses, right?"

"Indeed~"

"Then you guys can definitely see through sleight of hand! There goes, like, most of my tricks there!"

"Are you sure? You have a pretty fast hand."

"Compared to you guys?"

Ferid scoffed and handed me seven .45 Long Colt rounds cased in stainless steel. "Now you're just being dramatic!"

"You think I'm dramatic? Here-can you see this?"

I swiftly closed my hand, shook it up, and opened it, revealing that all seven bullets were gone.

"Did you see that?"

"Nope~"Ferid smiled. "Wow! You're good!"

I knew he saw it, but I was too frustrated to call his bluff. "...I guess I could do a few things...but shooting ain't one of 'em."

"Aaaaww,"Ferid sarcastically whined. "Why not?"

"I don't think they'll look too kindly on the fact that one of their livestock has with them a loaded gun and is coincidentally also The Second Fastest Gun Alive."

Ferid pulled me in closer by the collar; his face made a malicious smile as his finger moved a few of my bangs to the right. "But they don't know that? Do they?"

"...not yet."

He took a hold of my shoulder and started leading me out of the mansion and towards the Great Hall. Around me were other vampires in dark cloaks-the same uniforms they wore during the Great Blaze-guarding the palace while little kids loitered in their makeshift homes that littered the city. My pulse increased and I couldn't muster the strength to even see the Progenitors, let alone perform magic for them. My knees weakened as it felt as if we walked for hours.

We stopped outside a door once inside the palace. I could feel my blood pressure increase just as Ferid turned to me.

"Remember one thing,"he smiled.

"W-what?"

"-Don't die!"he cheerfully smiled.

Ferid led me into a giant room. The inside of the room was elegantly decorated, the marbling lined with gold and red curtains complementing the red rug floors. The chairs were fancy, as well as the numerous coffee tables. The bar to my left was fully stocked from the back all the way to under the counter with bottles of what I assumed to be blood. However, I noticed that there were more than three vampires in the room-there was an entire council of them.

They all looked at the two of us, their looks at me looking more ferocious. I turned slightly to Ferid.

"You told me there was only gonna be three at most. The Second and the two Third Progenitors,"I whispered to him.

"Oh? Did I not mention also the Progenitor Council~?"

"You sneaky-"

"Ferid!"called out a stern shout. It came from Krul Tepes, the Queen of Japan. "Why is that human armed?"

Ferid turned his attention to her. "Well~that's just part of his costume!" Ferid lightly elbowed my arm; I tried my best to imitate that I couldn't take the LeMat out. They looked undeterred. I gulped and stretched my collar, trying my best not to start choking.

"Who is he, Ferid Bathory?"a vampire stood up, silencing the room.

He stayed in place, not moving. He was different than any of the other vampires I've seen; he had skin as tan as mine, pale hair that was combed neat, and wore a glaring scowl. He wore a white dress shirt under a black vest with a grey back. Under the shirt's collar was a black ribbon tied by a white centerpiece. He wore black gloves in his hands that contrasted with my own left white glove.

"...the entertainment, of course~"Ferid said. "And, he's also the bartender."

I nervously looked at Ferid before looking back at the other vampire. He was suddenly right in front of me, grabbing the pistol and looking at it. I felt like I should say something, but he suddenly pointed the gun at me.

"Why are you armed?"he asked. He cocked the hammer back.

"I'm armed...but, it's unloaded. It's only a...costume piece."

He fired the gun, but nothing came out.

Still with the LeMat in his hand, he checked my pockets ferociously. He opened my hands and glove, but found nothing.

"It is against the law to have an armed human...I should have you both punished,"the vampire said, still glaring at me.

I figuratively started dying inside. Ferid simply replied, "We don't have to do that~"

He looked back at me and offered the pistol. Hesitantly, I reached for the silver handle, but the vampire's hand grabbed my hand. He leaned his face close to mine. "If I even see this gun in your hands again, I won't hesitate to kill you where you stand."

I stuttered to get the words out of my mouth. "I-I'll try not to disappoint."

* * *

It was a morbid thing to do-to pour blood into champagne or wine glasses and give them to the waiters for the vampires to drink. It nearly made my stomach crawl after every pour, after every bottle opened. I tried to imagine I was opening wine bottles, but it definitely was not the same. The waiters, kidnapped kids who the Japanese Vampire Nobility found to be adept as waiters, gave me each and every order. Some were for my own blood. Not allowing for that to happen, I opened a bottle of B Negative and poured that instead.

In between orders, I looked around the bar. There were only bottles of blood; there was no sign of water, soda, or even alcohol. I did find a few things of noticeable interest, but they didn't have any real use for me. Honestly, I had no idea what was going to happen in terms of my "magic show" to the vampires; I knew for a fact that they could see through sleight of hand. Still, that was the only kind of magic I knew, and pretty soon, the vampire from before approached me, requesting my name.

"Thai,"I answered. "Thai Nguyen. And...I never got your name."

The vampire sat down, his hand resting on the side of his face with his elbow on the countertop. "Second Progenitor Urd Geales."

I gasped internally; he was the big bas boss. "Second Progenitor? That explains a lot,"I nervously smiled. "And...what can I do for you?"

"Ferid said you new magic-'

"-more like cheap parlor tricks, m'lord,"I interrupted, hopefully cluing him in into not being disappointed as much in my sleight of hand.

"Still, Ferid placed you in charge of our entertainment." I could see a few more Progenitors walk up towards us from behind Urd. "So...show us a trick."

"Oh balls,"I muttered to myself...balls. An idea popped into my head.

I quickly looked around under the bar and grabbed two silver cups and a few mini soccer balls. If they wanted to see sleight in hand, then they would get to see it.

"Alright, now when you probably think of magic, you think of cards and coins and whatever," I passed the cup to the vampires. "As you can see, the cups are genuine silver and have no trap doors, no openings, no wires, pockets, magnets, nuclear bombs or candy." If his was going to be my last trick, I might as well do it well.

They passed me back the cups, which were placed downside up across from each other on my side of the counter. I placed two mini balls on top of the cups. "Alright, now I'm used to the enthusiasm that normal people would give me with each trick so please try to act surprised. Two silver cups. Each identical to each other-this one being twice as identical as the other one. Both are inverted-inverted defined as upside down...I'm not trying to be condescending-condescending is defined as having a feeling of superiority. I am obviously outclassed."

The vampires didn't react to any of the small quips I gave, as expected.

"Two regulation-size foosballs. Mission, keep your eye on the ball." I picked up one ball with my hand, closed it, and then opened it, revealing the ball to be gone. I noticed that a few looked remotely surprised. Weird, I thought. I revealed the ball in the other hand. "Now, throughout this presentation-," I squeezed the hand with the balls and put them close to my mouth, imitating that I swallowed them I spoke as if the balls were in my mouth, saying, "-and you could see that the balls disappeared from my hand again. Like magic."

The vampires looked at me like they were questioning my sanity. I clapped my hands together and laid them on the table as I swallowed the air that was in my mouth, revealing the balls to be under the cups after lifting them up.

"No. Wait. Save your applause for later,"I sarcastically said. However, I surprisingly got a minute amount of clapping. Did they really not see me switch the balls from hand to hand? Maybe I should go faster.

I put the cups back down.

"This ball travels from there to there-"I tapped one cup and then the other, "-and this ball from there to there. And they switch." I lifted both cups, revealing a stupid quip. Obviously, they sighed in disappointment as they realized what I just did. I chuckled internally; I put the cups back down over the balls. "Lord in the back, cup A or cup B?"I asked.

One of the Progenitors, a vampire who looked like a well-dressed Marilyn Manson, realized I was talking to him. "Huh..."

"'Huh' is not a cup,"I retorted.

Annoyed, he picked cup A.

"A it is." I quickly palmed down the cup, revealing the ball to be gone. "The ball disappears from A and ends up in B." Both balls sat under cup B after being revealed; I quickly grabbed cup B and put it under cup A. "It doesn't always have to work like that-"I grabbed one of the balls and closed my hand around it. "-Sometimes all you need to do is just blow." I held my closed fist up to Urd Geales. To my amazement, he blew softly into my fist. I opened it and the ball disappeared.

It was at this point that I felt like I was watching the show and not them; their reactions showed that they weren't catching up to the ball as fast as I thought they would. Were my hands that fast? I thought their reactions were bullshit, but they started looking confused, maybe even fooled. Maybe they could see through sleight of hand, but not mine.

"And the ball is under the first cup-"I lifted the top cup from the bottom cup and revealed the ball to be on top of the inverted bottom cup. "Because that was where it first belongs. No, please, save your applause for later."

I heard murmuring through the crowd and some clapping. I should get a bit faster in my hands.

"I'm gonna tell you what I'm not doing-"I grabbed the ball on the counter and placed the cup where it used to be, gripping the ball in my right fist. "-I'm not putting it under the counter and putting the ball back in the cup from underneath the table." As I said that sentence, I reached underneath with my right hand and bumped the counter, but revealed that the ball was still inside the cup. "That would be cheating. I will lie, but I will not cheat. You can believe that because it is the truth." Some of them snickered and scoffed sarcastically.

"There's three balls, aren't there,"Urd Geales finally asked.

I smiled to myself; he didn't see it. I opened both cups and both hands, revealing only two balls. The vampires now looked interested as I reset the trick. "Now! As some of you have probably figured out, I am a master of deception-"I picked up the ball from on top of the cup and placed it behind me. "-and while it may seem like I am putting the ball in my pocket, I never take the ball from out of the cup." I opened the cup to reveal the ball to be still in there. "Another thing you probably have figured out-" I kept performing the same routine over and over again, getting a tiny bit faster with each cup turned over. "-I am a Gunslinger-and, being a Gunslinger means I have fast hands. You think I am putting the ball in my pocket, but my hands just make it to where you think I am doing such that. In reality, I am only just messing with your perceptions-" I quickly made it to where they thought I threw it in the air, even looking up myself, but my other hand placed the ball on top of the inverted cup.

I looked down before the others did, generally shocked about how hey all looked up. I wanted to say they were just messing with me, but I kept going.

"Alright-"I acted like I swatted away the ball on top of the cup, but revealed it to be with the second ball under the first cup. "When I tap the cup, both balls appear. What color are they?"

"Black and white,"they murmured.

"...you're one hell of a crowd,"I remarked. I closed the cup and moved to the second one. "Okay, so if i tap the cup like so-"I tapped the cup. "How many balls come out?"

"Two."

I lifted the cup, revealing the two balls, before putting it back down. "What color?"

"Black and white."

I snickered, almost laughing hysterically. "Yellow." I lifted the cup and knocked it, throwing down a lemon. They all looked genuinely surprised after that.

"What-?"Urd breathed.

"Show of hands, who saw me put the orange under the cup? Be honest, come on, I know you guys saw it. That was horrible on my part."

"What orange? That's a lemon,"said a vampire. He was noticeably smaller, the main notice being his top hat. Another idea sparked.

"This one-" I lifted the second cup and popped an orange from under it. They were surprised, looking around to see if I had fruit under the counter. "Sir with the hat, can I have your name?"

"Lest Karr."

"Lord Karr...may I borrow your hat? I promise I will not damage it in any way."

He was hesitant, lashing out with ferocity. "Absolutely not, human!"

"Lest Karr,"interrupted Urd. "Give him your hat."

He winced from the yelling before hesitantly handing me the hat.

"I promise nothing will happen to it,"I promised as I flipped it once before I laid it between the orange and lemon. "Normally, this would be the part where I would ask if any of you are hungry, then lift the hat and reveal a watermelon, or something like that. Since I do not have a watermelon, I will be forced to ask if any of you are hungry and then reveal-" I lifted Lest's hat and revealed three bottles of blood that were under it, "blood."

There was no clapping, but they were all surprised on how I put three random bottles of blood under the hat in that single flip without hearing so much as a clink of glass or the table. Urd Geales still kept his straight face, the only one who saw the flash of green bottles in the hat as I flipped it. Busted.

"I saw that,"he muttered.

"Sleight of hand. Perfect against humans, not so much with vampires." I handed the hat back to Lest, who hurriedly took it from my grasp.

"You said you were a Gunslinger-"

"-and that if you were to see a gun in said Gunslinger's hand, that you would kill him on the spot. Yes...I am a Gunslinger...well, World Fast Draw Champion."

"Fast Draw?"Urd asked.

"I am the second fastest person to pull out a gun, cock it back, shoot it, and hit either one, two or even three to five targets."

"How fast?"

"My fastest draw, including reaction time, was at 0.253 of a second, just only a thousandths of a second away from the world record."

Urd paused for a moment. He closed his eyes, looking as if he was about to make a decision. He suddenly opened his eyes, sniffing the air. "Your gun is loaded."

I snickered nervously as the vampires around him grew closer. With the flick of my wrist, one of the stainless steel cased bullets appeared in between my fingers. I moved it between each finger as my left hand appeared to be placing the other six bullets on the counter. "You want to see a trick...you can't deny it,"I muttered.

He coldly agreed.

I slowly gripped the silver handle of my pistol, one finger at a time, before taking it out and laying it on the table. I screwed the pistol barrel off and took a hold of the cylinder, loading six out of seven bullets, before putting back together the gun.

"Shouldn't we do this outside?"I asked, making sure to put the hammer down on the empty cartridge.

"Don't even think about aiming that gun at us,"he said.

"Fair enough..."I griped. "The LeMat is not a Fast Draw revolver-if anything, it was one of the more impractical weapons of the Civil War in the 1860's that was favored by Confederate Generals. This one, however, seems to be converted."

I gave Urd two balls.

"Toss 'em in the air."

I holstered my pistol and stood a step back as Urd stood up. Even with a simple toss, the balls would have been sent in the air at an enormous speed that the normal person wouldn't track. Just like I predicted, Urd tossed both in the air. I spun the gun from its holster, thumbing the first shot and fanning the next, shooting both in the air in less than half of a second. Some of the vampires covered their ears, their heightened senses betraying them in such a close range. The shots didn't affect me as much; I was used to it.

"But that's not enough,"I said, drawing the vampires' attention to my left hand, taking multiple silver dollars from my pocket.

One-at-a-time, I flipped them up in the air. With my right hand, I pulled back the hammer and shot the pistol as the coins flew closer to the ceiling, each one being shot out of the air. The whole trick lasted around two seconds.

* * *

The aftermath of my "Sleight of Hand Show" was just a bit of clapping before the entire Progenitor Council decided to walk around Sanguinem. I, and the other waiters, were tasked in cleaning the room. Still behind the bar, I took a rag and wiped down the spilt blood and fruit that almost stained the lacquered counter. The bar still smelled of gunpowder. Looking around, I found all four silver dollars, two dented severely and two broken in pieces. There were also unnoticeable bullet holes in the ceiling, due to the first two shots.

I was the last to be done in cleaning, the lights still on and everyone gone. However, I knew I wasn't alone. As I was making sure the bottles under the counter were closed, I heard a clunk on the countertop.

"Hey,"I growled. "I just wiped that, kid."

"Look up."

It was Urd Geales. "Oh my...Lord Geales! If I known it was you, I would have not made such a disrespectful comment."

He slid a glass of unknown liquor towards me. "You're here still?"

"I'd rather not disappoint Ferid. I heard that a kid one time knocked over a bottle and pretty soon he was dangling from the edge of a bridge as a warning from a noble." I rose the glass to my nose and sniffed it. "What is it?"

"Cognac."

"Never had it before...thank you,"I said, shocked. "I didn't know the Second Progenitor could be so merciful."

"Not everyone saw it, but even though I could see behind your 'sleight of hand', it was a good performance,"Urd said. "Not perfect, but not bad."

I rolled my eyes inside my lids. "Thanks..."

I started drinking the glass. "However, I found your last trick beneficial."

"...beneficial? How so?"

"Have you heard of the 'Demon Army'?"

I took a breath, remembering what had happened.

"You have seen them before,"Urd said, noticing my expression.

"I...may have killed one of them out of self defense."

"What do you know of them?"

"Nothing much. The encounter was brief, but they didn't seem like an army. What about my trick being beneficial?"

I suddenly coughed up a large amount of liquor that spat onto the counter. Urd slid to the left, evading the cough. I was knocked to the counter, barely supporting myself with my elbow; I suddenly felt myself spasming greatly. I was coughing violently as Urd started to talk.

"Already, many vampires have died, and I'm not referring to the ones you have killed, Mr. Nguyen."

It felt as if my bones were made of glass, shattering under my own weight as my muscles acted as if they were tearing apart. "Wha...what is..."I sputtered.

"Krul Tepes believes she can handle this 'Demon Army', but, I believe there is still room to fill in her ranks. They have already killed a Tenth Progenitor stationed in Tokyo."

I gave off a slight scream, dropping onto the counter. Pain surged throughout me as my vision started fading.

"Your 'trick' isn't beneficial to me." He lifted my chin, sending even more pain as he bent my face towards his. "You are beneficial to me."

* * *

 **Oh no, my OC seems too OP and a Mary Sue...trust me, he won't be.**


	5. Final Wager and Disappointment

**Author's Note: The story of the Last Gunslinger is running parallel with the main storyline. I do not own Owari No Seraph!**

* * *

Final Wager and Disappointment

* * *

The blood of a vampire, if ingested, will turn any human into a vampire, putting their "biology" in a permanent state of suspension. As hemovores, the new vampire must now survive off of human blood in order to not tun into a demon. While internal vampiric biology is uncertain to me, one thing I knew for a fact that even vampiric blood will degrade in alcohol. Although regenerative, Urd forgot to consider how vampiric blood would react outside of the vampire's body and in the harsh elements, rendering it moot.

That isn't to say it didn't work. The reaction my body had when my cells went into contact with Urd's alcohol-degraded cells still made it to where I experienced my body transforming, but the threshold wasn't reached and I stayed human. Now weakened and drowsy, I awoke to find myself still in the bar. Stumbling around with my head swimming, I grabbed a metal champagne ice bucket and threw up the contents in my stomach. I pushed it aside and laid back on the ground for a few minutes, trying to calm myself down.

I silently looked around as my vision came to, holding a cough to reveal that no one was around me. Grunting from the headache I experienced, I hurriedly reloaded the LeMat with the final bullet I had. I needed to get out of here, or, at least, find Crowley and tell him what was happening. Maybe I could trust him. Right?

I frantically took off the leash around my neck and stuffed it inside of the bar before stumbling out to the main dining room hall. I supported myself on a table as I started recovering from a slight head rush. It felt like a bad hangover multiplied by two. From the watch on the top of the door, it seemed I was out for an hour. Holstering the LeMat, I opened the door and vaulted towards the exit.

Stepping outside, I knew that the vampires would question why an armed human was walking around, especially one that smelled of alcohol. It took some time, but I managed to sneak behind the wall of a bridge towards Ferid's Mansion. Luckily, there were relatively few vampire guards who were already distracted in maintaining the kids that were running around the area. I kept my fast pace as Ferid's Mansion came into view. If I could get in, I could make my way towards the Lusus Naturae and drive out of here. There was no way they could stop me once I reach the outside world. I walked up the stone steps, nearly bumping into a blonde-haired kid along the way, before seeing the elegant staircase towards the open doors.

My heart went still when I heard a vampire guard call to me. I slowly turned around, my hands slightly out as the guard approached me. I smiled and chuckled nervously as he approached me, sniffing the air.

"You're human,"he said. "But, you're armed...and reek of alcohol."

I quickly thought of an answer to give him. "Err...Lord Ferid gave me this,"I said, "He gave me a drink, but I spilt it all over me. I'm supposed to get a new shirt."

"..."

"Come on man,"I tried to lie. "You wouldn't want ta' keep Lord Ferid waiting. I'm his magician, and for some reason he likes my tricks, so if you won't mind, I'll be on my merry way."

I turned to walk away, but he grabbed me by the arm.

"I don't believe you,"he grunted. "You're coming with me."

I growled. "Like Hell I will-"

I pushed down on the revolver and shot the final bullet through the holster, hitting the guard in the head. He didn't die, only stumbling back from the sudden impact to where he fell off the bridge. Panicking from the thought that that shot echoed throughout the city, I ran towards Ferid's Mansion. However, just as I reached the doors, I saw a group of vampires approaching me. They cut me off from the garage, leaving me the only option of running towards the Study as they fanned out inside of the Mansion to find me.

I closed the doors behind me, sliding a gold candleholder through the door handles before dragging a table in front of it, hopefully allowing me some time to find any means of escape. There was no use; other than windows leading towards a high drop that would most likely kill me, there was nowhere to run. Looking around, I tried finding more .45 Long Colt Rounds that Ferid must have kept, seeing as how he had some for the converted LeMat.

I threw open drawers only to find useless trinkets and pages written in languages I couldn't understand. Hope was running thin for me at this point. Finally, I found something useful in the bookshelves. Throwing two books to their sides revealed a hidden panel that popped out from under the bookcase. Inside, I saw knives, swords, but more importantly, two Frontier M1878 Revolvers and an ornate .38 Schofield. I grabbed one of the Frontiers and hastily checked the cylinders. All three were empty, but under the red mat that the revolvers laid on top of were twelve .45 Long Colt Rounds and six .38 Smith and Wesson Rounds. Only having enough time to get the Frontiers, I opened the loading gates on them and quickly loaded the rounds just as I heard banging from the door. I shook the gun, closing the loading gate with the momentum of the shake before pointing them towards the door.

"Come get me, you sons of bitches,"I taunted. "A hundred and fifty pounds of lean meat; y'know you want it!"

The door burst open, shards of wood and metal flying towards me. I ducked under my arms to cover my head from the shrapnel, only to be grabbed in the throat by a deranged vampire. He threw me against a wall, pinning me down with his brute strength. It turned out to be the vampire I shot. Struggling to get any air, I quickly shot two rounds in his skull. He burst into ash, covering me in his remains.

I coughed up his remains as more vampires came at me. I quickly aimed my guns at them and fired at them, killing two more vampires. A third one ran towards me as I ran out of ammo. I threw the guns aside and pulled out my LeMat as I dodged the vampire. I cocked the hammer back and fired the LeMat, but failed to realize that it was empty. I kept firing the pistol, hoping that I still had a cartridge inside. The vampire slowly walked towards me with his sword out. I fired the seventh consecutive cartridge, but it was empty. As a last resort, I flipped the hammer to that of the shotgun's. I knew it was empty, but I might as well check it.

"You think you can kill me with an empty gun?"the vampire mocked.

"...maybe."

Unprepared, the gun flew off of my hands in a rage of smoke as birdshot killed the vampire. I gripped my hand in pain, blood gushing from the wounds the pistol made when the shotgun fired.

"Aaarrghh,"I roared. "Dammit, how come you didn't fire when I shot you the first time? Sonuvabitch!"

Realizing that more vampires were probably on their way, I decided to grab the Schofield and a few knives. Gripping its gold inlay ivory handle, I opened the revolver to load all six rounds. I put myself up against the doorframe and cautiously looked around. It was dead quiet; no one was running up the stairs or towards the Study. The entire mansion was empty. Anxiety crept up my spine, warning me of an imminent ambush or a concealed trap. However, I couldn't just stay cowering inside of the Study. I was a sitting duck.

Forcing myself outside. I started running towards the stairs. However, I tripped on the first step running down. I fell down, unknowingly dodging a rampaging vampire that struck the wall. I landed at the bottom of the stairs, nearly hitting my head against the railing. The vampire started descending the stairs quickly; I barely managed to shoot the side of his head, causing hi to jump back. I scrambled back up and fanned two more shots at him, missing the first but shot him in between his eyes with the second shot.

My head was hurting, but not enough for me to continue to race to my car. With a fast limp and adrenaline gushing through my bloodstream, I managed to locate the door leading to Ferid's garage. I remembered Crowley having the keys to the Lusus Naturae, but even he didn't know about the spare key inside of a compartment inside the steering wheel. I had a chance.

I broke into the garage door, rushing to close it behind me. When I turned around, I was horrified to see Urd Geales, Lest Karr, and Krul Tepes idly standing by next to the Lusus Naturae.

"Oh shit,"I muttered fiercely. "Goddammit."

Reaching behind me, I tried backing up out of the door, but stumbled into a cold body. A gloved hand shoved me back. Turning around, it was Ferid; so much for trusting him. I frantically aimed my gun from Urd to Ferid and back at Urd like a cornered tiger. I only had three rounds, but I think I could only kill one person here before the other three get the jump on me. Ferid was lightly chuckling to himself.

"Fufufu,"Ferid smirked. "Look at his face~."

"Why are you doing this?"I demanded. My free hand lightly hovered above the Schofield's hammer. "Without even my consent!?"

"Does immortality not appeal to you?"Urd asked in return.

"You don't just spike a drink with your blood and expect the man drinking it to just accept on the spot that he will become a vampire. Oh, and smooth move there Houdini. Alcohol degrades blood. And I thought I was the King of Sleight of Hand."

"Then maybe I should directly make you into a vampire."

I aimed the pistol at Urd. "Back up, Lord Geales. Your friends might get me in a rush, but not before I turn yer head into a canoe!"

I suddenly felt another hand grip my shoulder. I froze in shock, my eyes widening and hands staying still. Urd was now behind me.

"Oh shit..."

Urd grabbed the back of my neck and forced me down on my knees. I tried cocking back my Schofield to shoot Urd, but he suddenly gripped my wrist and crunched down with brutal force. I cried out in pain as Urd kicked me on my back; I dropped the gun and gripped my broken wrist. I cried in agony as Urd stomped on my chest. The wind was knocked out of me as the vampires surrounded me.

"God...sweet Jesus, let me kill this motherfucker,"I cried.

"This is your pathetic excuse for a replacement Tenth Progenitor,"Krul asked.

Ferid started chuckling. "Hahaha, so that's your plan?"Ferid mirthfully asked.

I tried rolling out from Urd's foot, but he pressed down harder. The pain overwhelmed my senses. "Please...stop,"I pleaded to Urd. "Let me go!"

"Quiet,"Urd roared. "Would you shut up already!"

"You got NO right, dammit!"I roared back. "Try'na secretly make me into a vampire behind my back and not being able to be a man about it!"

Tears rolled down my eyes as the excruciating pain of my broken bones shifting stabbed at me like a million needles.

Urd looked at my Schofield. "You're suggesting a duel, but you already know I'm faster than you."

"I wager...(oh fuck, my wrist)...that I can shoot you at least once. I do that, then I get to be human...as well as get my wrist fixed."

"Are you serious? Your right arm's broken,"Urd chastised.

"My wrist is really bad...but my left hand is just as fast, dammit."

I clenched my teeth as the pain surged when Urd took me back up to face level. "You're really persistent, aren't you?"

"...I'll take that as a yes,"I smirked, confident that I could shoot him.

Urd pushed me back up. I backed up into a wall as Ferid threw me the gun. Instinctively, I tried grabbing the gun with my right hand, but couldn't. I narrowly caught it with my left hand, my right hand pulsing with agonizing pain. I couldn't move or bend it, relying on thumbing the hammer back to cock the pistol. Urd stepped ten feet away from me. I stepped a few more feet back and aimed the gun at him. I didn't need to shoot him in the head; the chest seemed to be the widest part of his body. I cocked the hammer back, but Urd suddenly sprinted to the side before I could pull the trigger, shooting the Lusus Naturae's side.

"Fuck,"I muttered.

"How many bullets do you have?"

"I got two more with your name on it,"I grimaced.

I cocked back the hammer as the two of us circled each other. I quickly twisted my hand up and shot another round, barely missing him. The bullet managed to cut a piece of his jacket; the firing of the gun made the pain in my wrist worse. I groaned in pain as I cocked the gun back. I had one more bullet; I couldn't allow myself to become a vampire.

Urd stood in place as I aimed the gun at him. I clenched my teeth, pain and rage surging through me. The Second Progenitor's eyes locked with mine, his bottom lip suddenly bleeding. I stepped back.

"Oh my God..."

I pulled the trigger, letting the jolt of the gun fly out of my hand. My left hand, pushed back by the gun, grabbed the handle of a knife in my belt. I threw it at Urd just as his hand reached me. He threw me back against the wall as he forced his lips on mine, letting his blood drip inside my mouth. Panicking, my left hand grabbed the knife lodged into Urd's side and started ramming the blade against him. Urd finally let go after three stabs, but the damage was already done. It was like before, but the pain was intensified. Surging waves of agonizing pain overwhelmed me, making me shout in pain. I clutched my heart, the organ violently beating. My bones felt like they were splintering; my muscles started spasming. I dropped to the floor, coughing up blood.

"Interesting,"Urd remarked coldly. "You actually got me with a knife. I'm impressed."

My breathing grew heavy. I couldn't speak as I couldn't catch my breath. I cried out one last roar of anger before blacking out.

* * *

"You are one devious, sly, cheating, cantankerous bastard,"I growled.

"You will learn to accept it,"Urd said. "Maybe you'll learn to be more respectful to your Lords

"And why shouldn't I just kill you right now? You're a goddamn cheater."

"I am still more powerful than you."

"Bull-"

I roared in pain as my arm was taken off. Urd pushed me back as he caught my arm midair. He threw it back to me, which I reluctantly grabbed and reattached. Surprisingly, Urd patted my shoulder. I couldn't stop myself from pushing him off of me.

"Krul and Ferid will guide you,"Urd said. "You'll soon accept the inevitable."

"And you'll soon learn to never piss off a Gunslinger."

"Krul,"Urd turned his attention to the Third Progenitor of Japan. "He's yours now. Put him to good use."

"Urd Geales! How can we trust him so fast?!"Krul roared.

"Even he has to honor the wager he has made,"Urd answered.

"You cheated..."I grunted.

"You claimed you can shoot me with the three bullets you had in that gun,"Urd retorted. "You never said anything about a knife."

"I still won."

"You will follow Krul's orders. Help her clean up the mess in Tokyo."

With no other choice, I had to accept his order.

* * *

The hall was luxurious. A long table sat square in the center that went from end to end. It was full of rich and savory food such as turkey, fresh vegetables and wine...food and drink I could never eat or drink again. The carpet was a soft red and the walls were a creamy off-white that was lined with red and gold curtains. Candles and artificial light dimly lit the room. I sat on one of the mahogany chairs opposite to that of Crowley.

Many vampires, including Crowley, weren't too content with my sudden turning. I was obviously pissed off still. If anything, only Ferid seemed happy. Urd left me in the care of Krul Tepes, but she was still ignorant in having me. Ferid decided to put me under his non-existent wing, something he looked forward to. Not only did he have a powerful swordsman (Crowley), but now he has me, the newly turned Gunslinger. I kept cursing Urd out inside my mind for cheating. I was faster-I fucking proved it-but, I shouldn't of said I would use only the three bullets in the Schofield. I growled when thinking about both Urd's cheating and my own mistakes.

A stack of clothes suddenly hit the table top next to me. Ferid threw a pair of black boots at me before sitting down and sighing in delight. Even through his glamorous smile and collected eyes, I could sense that even he was still shook up from what happened today. I looked at the clothes and boots.

"Why in the hell do you guys wear thigh-highs?"I wondered out loud.

There was a black shirt with white trims on the collar and cuffs that encircled nearly half my forearm. Next was a white military jacket with black trims on the lapel and gold buttons running down the front of the jacket that held it together. The cuffs of the jacket were black and held white buttons. A black belt was held along the waist with two smaller belts forming an "x" on the end of the jacket. A black piece was held on the left side of the jacket. A pair of white pants came next and of course those questionable thigh-high boots with three buttons on the top and black soles, heels and toes. White gloves came last. As tradition, I only put the left one on and hung the right from my jacket pocket.

"At least I don't have to wear that collar, huh?"I joked to Crowley.

"Are you okay?"

"No,"I said, my tone growing more serious and deeper. "I'm as far from okay as possible. I feel like shooting up this entire goddamn city of yours if it means I can be human again!"

"You're not going to kill me of course,"Crowley smirked.

I sighed in grief. "You know I'm not gonna do that. Are we not friends?"

"Sure. We are friends, after all,"he smiled.

"Hah! Oh shit! You finally admitted it."

I wrapped the rig around me before grabbing the Schofield. I could still smell the blood stained on the revolver barrel. It smelled enticing-enough for me to lick it. That was a mistake; the gunpowder made things terrible.

"You shot Urd Geales?"

"No,"my tone grew hoarse and angry upon hearing Urd's name. "The pistol flew off my damn hand and I stabbed him with a knife. Blood got all over the damn pistol." I started wiping it off with a piece of cloth.

"The blood of your sire? It's morally wrong to drink it."

I stopped and groaned in disgust. "Y'know, two and a half years ago, that would've been a strange thing to hear."

"Everything fitting alright!"Ferid finally asked.

"Like a glove."

I started tying my hair into a bun until Ferid grabbed it. "I'll do it for you."

"Alright...so what do we do now?"

"Urd might have turned you, but you belong to me now, Timii-chan. Krul Tepes still doesn't enjoy the idea of you being turned so suddenly, so I have agreed to become your mentor!"

I growled under my breath and clenched my fist. "What do you mean?"

He slid the silver pin through my hair, humming a jubilant tune.

"Ferid wants you to join his Faction,"Crowley answered.

"...Faction?"

"Apparently, Ferid is planning something devious, but, it's pretty interesting for what he has in mind."

"Oh, that can't be good,"I muttered. "Why don't you spill the beans...boss?"

"So you already accept me as your master, Timii-chan~?"Ferid smiled. "Are you gonna fulfill all of my wildest desires~!?" He softly wrapped his arms around me.

"I-I don't know about...I don't know how to answer that, but I trust Krul less than you...and Urd isn't exactly on my favorites anymore. Besides, even if I wanted to, I can't just shoot all of you and expect to walk out of this city alive. So, I guess I have no choice but to begrudgingly join your little Tea Party. If you promise that I get out of this unscathed...(I'm gonna regret saying this)...I'll point my gun wherever you tell me. If you don't...you might as well be digging a six foot ditch outside."

He laughed hysterically, unfazed that that was an actual threat. "If you're eager to shoot someone, then~"

The door opened suddenly. Even with my pistol empty, my hands reactively shot towards the gun and cocked it back. Two vampires held the doors open as a small child-probably 11 or 12-walked through and entered the dining hall. The kid had a large head of blonde hair and a white uniform that all the livestock wore. He had clear blue eyes just like mine and looked intimidated when walking in. In fact, he was the kid I almost bumped into when I was attempting to escape.

"...Lord Ferid-sama?"he asked. "I've returned."

"Oh, perfect! Mika-chan is here~!"Ferid laughed.

"Who?"I asked.

He only looked at me with a smile that chilled me.

"Oh, dude..." I got up and coughed. "I ain't about to witness this."

Before I could walk out, Crowley grabbed me by the arm. "Stay. It's disgusting, I know, but-"

I growled, forcefully freeing my arm from Crowley's grip before returning to my seat.

Ferid chuckled. "You must excuse Tim-kun. He's new."

"A new vampire?"Mika asked. "I thought you were human when I ran into you."

"I was,"I growled under my breath as I smelled the wine. Hours ago, I would've drank this without any thought; now, it was inedible for me.

"Tell you what, Mika-chan. You let Tim-kun drink from you and you can go home with double of what you want~"

"What the-"I mouthed.

"-Please?"Mika suddenly said.

I turned, bewildered out of my mind; the world's gone mad! Mika actually wanted me to feed off of him. The very idea of feeding off of a human in general was horrible, but something inside of me triggered an innate hunger. My conscious clashed with biological behavior as I stumbled towards him with my hands out. I forcefully grabbed him, picking him up and revealing his neck. I growled under my breath as I sunk my fangs into Mika's neck. I closed my eyes and drew blood, immediately withdrawing after two long seconds of feeding. Subconsciously, I licked the blood off my mustache, morbidly realizing that I enjoyed the taste. Mika was clutching the side of his neck with blood seeping out from in between his fingers.

I didn't want to admit it, but I felt-

"-satisfied?"Ferid laughed.

I looked at the reflection of a silver platter. My blue eyes slowly turned red, finalizing my change.

"Yes,"I breathed.

* * *

 **Leave a comment, review, criticism, etc.**


	6. Blood and Brass

**Author's Note: IMPORTANT- Midway once you read the dialogue between Thai, Crowley and Ferid, you're probably going to be wondering, "Hey, this seems familiar/not like the author's writing." As a disclaimer, I had to use parts of The Story of Vampire Michaela by Kagami Takaya as this AU runs parallel with Ferid drawing the map to further his own wicked plot (Spoiler Alert). While I have changed the story around to fit with my AU, I don't want anyone to think I am plagiarizing. Do NOT sue me.**

 **Also: To note, the pistol that Mika stole and Yu used to shoot Ferid in the head looked to be a cross of the barrel of a Colt Navy 1851 and the butt of a flintlock pistol. Obviously, this doesn't exist as the design is impractical. I changed it to the Schofield Revolver as (1) Colt Navy 1851 revolvers were ball-and-cap revolvers, not cartridge revolvers, (2)it's not conversion because it lacks an ejector rod, (3) they both look similar, (4) it does not look like a modern revolver.**

 **Thai calls Mika "Misha", Misha being another version of Michael, which in turn is a version of Michaela/Mikaela**

 **The song Thai sings in the beginning is "Into the Night" by Santana**

* * *

Blood and Brass

* * *

"Where is everybody?"

"Shut up. This doesn't look good."

A Moon Demon Company squad cautiously surveyed the ruined buildings of Eastern Tokyo. Their target was a nest of vampires supposedly raiding human survivor camps and kidnapping the people they didn't kill. Already, a few soldiers guarding a camp were all slaughtered, the blood drained from their bodies. The current squad of soldiers, avenging the deaths of their fallen comrades, have finally found an open subway station station that the vampires used as their base of operations. An informant claimed that there were seven vampires in total, but there was no report of a Noble pr a Progenitor.

Not taking any chances, they quietly stepped down the stairs, keeping an eye out for any sudden movements. However, upon reaching the lower levels, their only source of light being the sparse beams of sunlight flowing through cracks on the ceiling, there were no signs of vampires or human survivors. Normally, the vampires would let their kidnaped survivors group around effortlessly, seeing as how the Horsemen outside would control their means of escape, but the situation was different. It looked as if no one had been here since the Great Blaze.

"I don't like it,"said a soldier, gripping his katana with his shaky hands.

"Stay calm. They could be-"

Their leader was cut short once they heard a voice boom throughout the dark corridors. The squad, caught in surprise, whipped around behind them as the voice kept going. They inched closer down the hall, trying to decipher the origin of the voice. The voice spoke in English, but upon closer examination, appeared to be singing.

 _Like a gift from the heavens, it was easy to tell;_

 _It was love from above that could save me from Hell._

 _He had fire in his soul and it was easy to see;_

 _How the Devil himself could be pulled out of me._

 _There were drums in the air as he started to dance;_

 _The souls in the room keeping time with their hands,_

 _And we sang..._

The voice kept singing, albeit nowhere from being perfect. Although it sounded romantic, it was slow, the tone solemn. The voice was soft, but clearly being able to be heard. The song echoed throughout the dark corridor, coming from inside of a room with cracked windows. Meanwhile, the soldiers huddled below, still listening as the singer in the room continued his performance. The soldiers stopped themselves from becoming relaxed from the music; they still didn't know who was singing.

"Could it be a vampire?"asked one soldier. "They might be playing a recording."

"No, it sounds alive,"said the leader. "Stay low. I'll check. Watch my six."

Their leader quietly crept to the door, keeping her head low and her weapon, a Kusarigama, in her clutches. She took out a square piece of mirror from her jacket pocket and positioned it to secretly survey the insides of the room. It took a while, but she managed to get a somewhat good view of the singer.

"It's a man. Approximately 176 centimeters in height,"she softly said. "...and he appears to be dancing?"

Ever so carefully, the man had his arms up as if holding the waist and hand of his dear partner, only, there was no one with him. He swayed in the empty room, the light of a lamp bouncing off of his hat and coat, adding to the solemness of his song. The slow tempo of the song matched his footing, the man cautiously avoiding the littered trash around the floor. Kira was taken aback on this man. Why was he dancing in a time like this? Is he crazy?

"What does he look like, Kira?"asked one of her soldiers.

"I can't tell. He's wearing a large black overcoat, black wide-brimmed hat, I can't see any distinguishing features of a vampire. His hair and hat are making it harder for me to see his eyes and ears. I can't see any fangs, either."

"Could...could he be a human?"

Kira pondered the possibility as she kept observing the man. He had no sword attached to his hip. No vampire she had encountered before exhibited this level of human behavior; no vampire danced by themselves while singing a song. He moved more freely than a vampire. He kept singing.

 _Like the piece from a puzzle that falls into place;_

 _you could tell how we felt from the look on our faces._

 _We were spinnin' in circles with the Moon in our eyes._

 _The room left a move in between you and I._

 _We forgot where we were and we lost track of time;_

 _We sang to the wind and we danced through the night_

 _And we sang..._

He certainly didn't sound like a vampire. His accent was Western, although his skin color tan. He suddenly brought his arms closer to himself, muttering something to himself that Kira couldn't hear or understand.

"He might be human,"Kira finally said.

"We can't take that risk,"said another soldier. "It could be a trap."

"I never heard of a vampire singing and dancing before,"said another soldier. "But, they could be using him to lure us into a smaller room, making for an effective ambush."

Kira looked back in her mirror, only to find the man still dancing, humming the song to himself.

"Maybe we should see if anyone else is here,"the soldier said. "For all we know, this could be an ambush."

"Understood,"Kira accepted. "Quietly."

Unbeknownst to the soldiers as they carefully left the room, the man inside of the room heard their entire conversation. He smiled to himself, still humming his song. White fangs glistened in the lamplight. The man took off his hat, revealing a mess of black hair that was tied in a bun on the back with a silver hairpin, a delicate dragon etched into it. He looked straight ahead of him with his red eyes, staring at the space in front of him as if a person stood right before him.

"Oh, Haru,"he softly said, leaning his head in forward. "Why must you berate me every day? I thought you were having fun?"

He stopped dancing and humming, unbuttoning his jacket. Meanwhile, the soldiers started surveying the Subway tracks and decks, finding nothing but trash, rubbish, and empty rooms. It didn't make sense; the vampires were supposed to be here. Kira centered her squad back in the main hallway.

"They must've left,"she said. "But why leave that man in here?"

"He might be a vampire,"said a soldier.

"No, he would have heard us by now." Her eyes suddenly widened. "Wait...do you hear that?"

Her squad, caught unaware of the silence around them, suddenly drew their weapons. They looked around themselves, clutching their weapons shakily as the unnerving silence raised their fears and suspicions.

"The singing has stopped,"Kira gasped.

The sound of boots suddenly filled the empty corridor. The squad looked to see the man slowly stepping towards them. His overcoat was gone, revealing a black rig around his waist. On either side of his hips were two grey revolvers, both with silver grips that shone in the light. His hand, the left gloved and the right ungloved, laid on the steel belt buckle. His hair lightly shook with each step. His red eyes glared at each and every one of them as a whistle escaped his lips.

The soldiers stumbled back, clutching their weapons like scared sheep as the man slowly stepped towards them.

"Halt!"Kira yelled. "Don't take another step."

"I don't halt for no one,"muttered the man.

"I said STOP!"

She flung her Kusarigama at the man, trying to strike him with her razor-sharp kama. The man narrowly dodged her, keeping his relaxed composure as he landed on the edge of a stone bench.

"So, you are a vampire?"she asked. Her squad surrounded the accused with their weapons out.

The man groaned, brushing his hair away to his right side. "Unfortunately,"he mused.

Before the squad could pounce at the vampire, three soldiers were suddenly struck in the head. Their bodies flew back down on the ground as the vampire turned his attention to the remaining two soldiers. One soldier rolled to the side and aimed his bow at the vampire, shooting a volley of demonic arrows at him. The vampire simply rolled away and fired two more shots, ending the man's life.

The vampire suddenly felt his arms become tangled by chains that forced his arms to be wrapped up on his sides. Kira, angered in a frenzy at the loss of her comrades, rushed forward with her Kama, roaring a vicious, bloodcurdling scream.

"YOU MONSTER!"

The vampire simply nodded as his hand reached inside of his pocket. Before Kira could reach the vampire, a playing card suddenly struck her shoulder in such a velocity that lodged the card three inches inside of her flesh. She screamed in pain, the chains wrapping around the vampire loosening. The vampire lunged at her, grabbing her by the waist before throwing her against the stone bench. She let out a frightful shout; her back broke with the force of the impact, leaving her paralyzed on the ground. The vampire simply sighed before kneeling down to face her.

"I'm sorry,"he mused. "I wanted this to end as painless as possible, but you had to make things harder for yourself."

Tears started rolling down her eyes; blood streamed from her mouth. "P-Please..."

"Sorry again, but I can't just let you live, now can I?"

He holstered his two revolvers, reaching around his back to reveal a more ornate revolver. He brought it to her head, cocking back the hammer before pulling the trigger. The crack of the shot echoed throughout the corridor. Blood splattered on the vampire's face, causing him to lick whatever he could from his mustache and lips.

* * *

JIDA rumors claimed that a "vampire cowboy" was on the loose in Tokyo. They weren't wrong. Relying solely on the two Frontiers and the Schofield, I was the JIDA's Western Front's terror. Not even their skilled archers could combat the quickest gun they have ever seen.

Meanwhile, the Queen paid no attention to me. Ferid, in her stead, ordered me to stay put in Tokyo to defend against any attacks instead of attacking the humans directly. I was fine with that; most days I would just stay put with a cadre of vampires around me. Reports were still a pain in the ass, as well as raids on livestock settlements in the area, but for the most part, I was staying put.

I never would of thought that Haru would still be stained into what was left of my imagination. He constantly watched over me silently on top of buildings, behind cars, and even wrap his arms around me as I hunted for my prey. In one particular incident, I was coaxed into dancing with him to lure in that particular squad of soldiers that were hell-bent on slaying a group of vampires.

With the coming Winter, a new Progenitor came. He quickly took over my post and I was sent back to Nagoya to oversee Crowley's reign. I didn't dare question it, but from what I could tell, it looked fine. The humans never crossed Tokyo's border, especially due to the numerous failed invasions towards Niigata. The vampires and Progenitors who last year looked down on me with utter prejudice and hatred now looked at me with the eyes of rivals and threats. I might have been turned by the Second Progenitor, but I wasn't in the same faction as everyone in Nagoya, except for Crowley.

All was going well. Crowley and I were still best friends, but one day, Ferid called the two of us to his Mansion for an unknown reason. Disgruntled, I found the Thirteenth Progenitor outside Town Hall. He immediately noticed my arrival two miles beforehand. The Lusus Naturae skidded to a stop just outside of Town Hall's steps.

"Get in!"I roared.

"Your car is too loud."

"Yeah, I know, just get in."

He got inside and we started driving immediately after.

"What does he want this time?"I asked.

"Ferid wants to talk to us today. We're drinking tonight."

"Crowley, I-I-we can't drink anymore."

Crowley sighed, annoyed at my little joke. "Blood, Tim-kun, we're drinking blood." He sounded whimsical.

"It was a joke. You don't have to be all sad about it. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm just annoyed how Ferid called us so soon like this."

"I mean, it wouldn't be the first time, when you think about it. If I remember correctly, Ferid's been making you run around left and right while I just sit here doin' nothing."

Crowley smirked. "You almost sound like you're still human."

"Aarghh,"I growled, remembering a certain pale-haired vampire's name. "Don't fucking remind me!"

"Okay-okay,"Crowley, still smirking while holding his hands up in defense playfully. "No need to be so dramatic."

I took a breath. "Do you have any idea what Ferid wants to talk about?"I changed the subject.

"I have an idea, but knowing Ferid, it's anyone's guess."

* * *

Sanguinem was as dark and Gothic as it was a year and a half ago. Pipes and stone ran around me with the grueling scent of stale water sometimes lofting in my nose. The air held a nice, cool breeze as the two of us walked towards Ferid's mansion. All around us were the livestock children who continued to survive off the vampires' gratitude. Vampires on every corner, ranging from the common City Guard to the occasional Noble, would greet us with respect.

"Lord Crowley. Lord Thai."

I couldn't help but smirk every time I heard that. However, that happiness turned to dismay once we entered through the Mansion's luxurious gates. We passed the lush gardens and through the giant doors only to find the place empty. Still, it looked a lot cleaner than when it was when I rampaged throughout the place. There were no more bullet holes and thrown furniture.

"Damn. I was actually hopin' for a bright reception."

"He's probably in his Study."

Upon entering the room, I noticed that the Study was devoid of any bullet holes or destroyed furniture. Of course, it was a little over a year ago. We saw Ferid sitting on a chair, drawing something on old parchment. With his signature long smile and a delicate hand, he carefully laid each line of ink on the parchment. We stood there, observing him for a while, until Ferid laid his pen down and looked at the finished product.

"Hmm, still a little off." He crumpled it up and threw it across the room.

He unrolled more parchment and started drawing again. Was he a calligrapher? An artist? I knocked on the door.

"Can we come in?"Crowley asked.

"I'm busy right now,"Ferid responded.

"Too bad,"I said. We walked in anyway.

"What are you doing?" Crowley asked.

Holding up his pen, Ferid answered, "There is something I've been hiding from you both until now...actually, I dreamed of becoming a painter."

Crowley picked up several crumpled sheets of parchment that were littered across the room. "A painter?"

"The bullshit,"I scoffed.

"Yup." Ferid smiled in awe.

"And this is a picture, in your opinion?"Crowley asked.

"Yes, it obviously is?"

"It looks like a map to me though."

I picked one up and unfurled it, revealing an intricately drawn map.

"And that is why I hate those who have no understanding of art. Alright then, I should continue."

Ferid once again started carefully inscribing lines of ink on the parchment with delicate care. I threw the map on hand on the floor as Crowley and I walked up behind Ferid. Crowley seemed really suspicious of Ferid, most notably his long stare at Ferid's work.

"I knew it, it's totally a map,"Crowley accused Ferid.

"Can you not peek?" Ferid playfully brought himself over his map like a child would on a test. "I'm the type who can't draw while I'm being watched. I may not look it, but I'm rather shy."

"Yeah, yeah. So, this is a map of this underground city, Sanguinem, I take it. Why are you suddenly drawing maps, pray tell?"

Continuing to draw his map, Ferid answered, "Well, I plan to let children who want to escape to the outside find this."

"Oh."

"And then, just when those children's eyes sparkle as they think they've successfully escaped," Ferid smirked maliciously. "I will ambush them near the exit and devour them in a highly artistic way."

"…Whoa, what the hell. Your terrible tastes never change, huh,"Crowley gasped.

"Wow...you must be incredibly bored out of your mind to think of something stupid like that,"I winced. "Y'ain't got better shit to do?"

"How awful of you two to call my tastes terrible. That is the precise reason why those who cannot understand the beauty of art are so troublesome to deal with," Ferid went on, connecting dots and lines, lines and dots, peppering the parchment, one after another.

"I understand the beauty of art just fine, but dear goddamn ain't you takin' this a little too far?"I asked. "Just a bunch of kids, innit?"

Crowley spoke up again. "To begin with, there are plenty of this city's maps around already. Why do you need to draw one yourself?"

"Oh, I need to. It's a lot more amusing if I did everything myself," Ferid replied in a sick tone.

Crowley, however, looked as clueless as usual. Due to living for too long, vampires lost all sense of emotion, only retaining their most notable characteristics. Amusement, for example, was probably lost to vampires before they have lived for a century. I, myself, remembered the feeling all too well due to my recent transition. What vampires did have was only the hunger for blood. A hunger for blood and an eternal life of misery was all that was left for us vampires. I only grasped the surface of what is to come next; it was like living an eternal punishment. Already, I have killed twenty five people in the past year, not even batting an eye to their gruesome deaths.

"If drawing can elevate the boredom, maybe I should try it, too," Crowley commented. "Didn't you used to draw, Tim-kun?"

"No. I only did cards, cars, and guns."

"Want to start with drawing my portrait then, Crowley?"Ferid teased at Crowley.

"No way."

"Then what do you want to try drawing? Does the little pervert Crowley-kun want to draw a girl in the nude?"

I coughed to cover a hoarse laugh before hitting my chest repeatedly to stop chuckling. Crowley didn't look happy about it; he seemed to be pissed off. I lightly tapped him on the chest as Ferid sat back to admire his completed work.

"You gotta admit, he gotcha there." I whispered to Crowley.

"I know little Timii-kun wants to draw his boyfriend in the nude,"Ferid chuckled.

I stopped laughing, my trigger finger itching. "Watch it, Ferid,"I forced a smirk. "Maybe I'll just use you as target practice."

"Haha, Timii-chan can't take a joke~,"Ferid mused; I sighed in defeat.

Crowley grunted and looked at the map. "You were having so much fun drawing that map… it's almost hard to believe that you're a vampire," Crowley remarked, looking at Ferid wonderingly.

Ferid ignored him. I looked at the map. The lines were intricate, without flaw and precise with even the tiniest detail. He might be kidding about being an artist, but in him I could definitely see he had the precision and focus of one. Maybe if he wasn't forced to live an eternal and boring life, he would actually value the work he has made and not use it to torture the livestock for his own gain.

Ferid was a sick and vile vampire. Never had I encountered someone as morbid and cunning as he was. Just why did he want these kids killed? Livestock weren't to be fed on directly when inside the capital; killing them would be even worse.

"Crowley-kun. Timii-kun."

"Huh?"

"What do you think of this map?"

"Can you be more specific? From what perspective do you want me to answer that question?"Crowley asked.

"From the beauty perspective."

"Beauty, huh."

Crowley peered over Ferid's shoulder. Folding his arms across his chest and lightly stroking his chin with a finger, he suddenly smirked like a trickster, like he thought up of something. "Well, I think I'll take a picture of a naked woman over this."

I burst out laughing, covering my face. Ferid laughed too, but in doing so, he knocked down a glass that was on his desk. The blood that was once inside soaked the parchment, ruining it indefinitely. The laughter ended.

I felt a grueling sensation hit my stomach; the sight of blood reminded me why I even bothered coming here. I licked my right fang, stopping myself from thinking about licking the parchment clean of blood. I could see Crowley showing signs of hunger; the hair on the back of his neck standing and a slight gulping sound coming from his throat. I guess he was really looking forward to just be drinking blood instead of having this weird conversation with me and Ferid.

"Hah, I knew it, you are a pervert, Crowley-kun,"Ferid chuckled.

"How mean. I'm just hungry, is all. And speaking of, that's what I came here to say."

"To say that I'm a pervert?"

"No. Yesterday's night, we were going to talk about the past while drinking blood in your mansion, remember?"

"Oh."

Crowley grimaced. "Don't pretend this is the first time you heard this. You proposed it yourself. Besides, we came here all the way from Nagoya because you called, and I want you to tell us already for what business exactly. Or maybe I should just go back?"

"No."

"Then tell us what business you called us here for, quickly."

Ferid laughed and put the pen down. "Fine then. Let us hear the rest of the story about how you became a vampire, while enjoying some blood."

"Huh?"I asked, lost in the conversation.

"Oh right!"Ferid said. "Crowley-kun used to be human!"

"Well shoot, I knew that, but are you not concerned about the map at all?"

"Oh well, I'll just finish it later." He didn't seem to care.

"All right." I pulled up a chair. "But why am I here? This seems kinda personal."

"Don't you want to know what Crowley-kun was like?"Ferid teased.

Crowley looked at me with his signature unassuming look as if he didn't really care whether or not I was here or not. I begrudgingly sat back.

"...I guess,"I answered.

* * *

"Jesus H. Christ, all that for what?"

It was late already. Crowley retired in a coffin, a stereotype that I presumed never even existed until now. Ferid and I just watched Crowley sleeping. In reality it didn't look like he was sleeping; his body was motionless and cold. I'd mistake him for dead if I didn't know his true identity. Speaking of identity.

"All this shit for what?"I asked Ferid again. "And why'd you call him Michaela?"

"You'll understand well enough, soon,"Ferid smiled. He seemed to be contemplating the story he just listened to.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"You just did~"Ferid sarcastically smiled.

I rolled my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. "Okay-I'm gonna guess then that that chance encounter between the three of us when I sold you that Impala wasn't just a coincidence. Were you gonna do what you did to Crowley with me?"

He only smirked at me; only his look gave me the answer I didn't know I didn't want.

"I honestly don't know if I should be blessed that Haru isn't alive anymore so he couldn't witness this shit. You're despicable, mate. I should shoot you where you stand."

"You always say that you're going to shoot us, but you never do. Do I sense a little intimidation~"Ferid teased. "Or is it loyalty?"

I looked back at Crowley. It was hard to imagine him, a Knight of God, now a vampire. He's been alive since the Crusades, a relic of human history preserved by the vampiric curse that was also keeping me alive. He looked so peaceful, reminding me of that time when I found him sleeping next to me. Ferid noticed my look.

"Do you want to kiss him on the lips, Tim-chan? I won't tell."

"Pfft...sure,"I coughed sarcastically.

If I was still human, I might have actually kissed him. However, I haven't felt the feeling of love as strongly anymore. Where I might have contracted Stockholm Syndrome (I won't deny or confirm that), I now barely harbored any romantic feelings over anyone. The only love that has yet to falter was my love for Haru, but he was gone.

"Do you want me to reveal a hidden truth?"Ferid asked.

"...I'm a little hesitant..." I laid my hands loosely on the butts of my pistols.

"I have been watching you ever since you won your first Fast Draw competition!"

"What?! Oh, you know what...I shouldn't even be surprised,"I grimaced disappointedly.

"You blew all those adults away! The looks on their faces when all of their records were broken were priceless! But, don't you remember?"

"Remember what?"

"I gave you your first trophy."

Now, that was funny. I couldn't stop myself from laughing; there was no way I couldn't of missed a pompous bastard such as him waltzing around a Fast Draw competition full of people playing Cowboy. However, Ferid kept his smirk, making me stop laughing. He was serious. But, I couldn't remember his face; was he messing with me or was he actually there? "That's...no...that was Silver Star Silas. That weren't you."

Ferid only gave a shrug and smirked. "Wha~? It's true! It was all me! I'm just telling you how I remember it."

"Sure you are,"I said. "So...there's Crowley, and then me..."

"Honestly, you were a surprise to me. It should have been impossible for there to be two of you near the same time..."

"Two? There's another Gunslinger? Was it Howard Darby? Munden?"

"No, not a Gunslinger...but you are special."

"Who's the second...or third?"

"That's a secret,"he winked. "Well...technically you're the second. This next person is the third. Or would he be the fourth and you the third? Hmm..."

"Way to keep track, Einstein,"I muttered.

"Don't be cheeky."

I gave off a sarcastic scoff. "Whatever. I'm gonna go for a walk."

"Do you want me to walk with you?"

"No."

Leaving Ferid as quickly as I could, I entered the garden-laden walkways of the Mansion's exterior. I contemplated about what Ferid had said, along with Crowley's own stories. While I only heard the ending, it was enough for me to realize how careful Ferid was in scouting out Crowley as a potential vampire. And, after all this time, Ferid already had his sights set on me, even so far as to even watch me out in the open during my time in the WFDA and Cowboy Action Shooting. Giving me my first trophy? Just what was he getting at? If he had been watching me this entire time, then I surely would have noticed a pretentious bastard such as Ferid prowling around me. Thinking of it made me sick. I winced at the thought of him even witnessing-

"-Juarez,"Haru said.

"Dammit, why don't you leave,"I whispered to myself. "I thought vampirism would end you."

"Remember Juarez?"

I muttered a curse. "I don't remember seeing Ferid anywhere near me. How is it he could have plainly-"

"-that wasn't the question I asked." His finger silenced me before I wiped it off, playing as if I was wiping my mustache.

"Fine...and I thought Crowley was the only one doing 'Show and Tell'. Juarez...well, it was a shit show to say the least. Hot dry day. Warm water. A lot of black powder in the air. Guns weren't working for everyone for some bloody reason. Suddenly, as if it wasn't bad enough already, ol' Naggy Ned decided to show up drunk to a gun competition. Naturally, he missed every...single...target. He got mad and challenged the fastest person to a duel. I won all three duels, until he got even madder, turning his gun on me. A few guys tried to hold him down, but were all shot when Ned slid his gun out of his holster. I had to shoot him, just at the stroke of High Noon. How poetic."

"And, do you remember who picked you up when you fell from an asthma attack?"

I scoffed. "Of course I do. Silver Star Silas! The judge! Shit, that was a clever name he got himself. Cheerful attitude. Elegant voice. Younger than a lot of folks o'er there. Although he didn't necessarily compete, he had on with him this beautiful Schofield. He always wore white, had red eyes, silver...oh for fucks sakes!"

"Huh? Looks like you've found your-"

"-that sneaky bastard,"I angrily gritted my teeth. "I'm gonna gut him one day."

I suddenly felt a small bump, stopping me in my tracks. I looked down and a small kid fell down. It was Mikaela. Annoyed at the kid's failure to notice the 5'9" Gunslinger in his path, I grabbed him by the back of his shirt's collar and held him up to eye-level. He was startled, to say the least, but he stayed relatively calm, even when I was glaring at him ferociously.

"Ha...sorry, sir,"he apologized softly, giving a wide smile.

"Apparently, kids in the Apocalypse don't give a damn where they're running off to,"I growled. "What're you doin', little Misha?"

Still with a smile, he answered politely, "I was merely walking home, sir. I wasn't looking and I accidentally bumped into you. I'm very sorry."

I grunted. "Hmph." Viewing his neck, it looked as if he was being fed on by Ferid again; Mika's pulse was making me hungry. "I should beat ya' for not looking where you're going...but, I'll let it slide for now."

"Th-thank you, sir,"Mika happily sighed. "By the way, who were you talking to?"

"You didn't see me but you bumped into me?"I asked, suspicious.

"I'll admit, I heard you, but I wasn't paying attention to where you were,"he frantically said.

Clearly, he was fumbling around with this story, but being a kid, he might've been telling the truth. "...to myself."I covered up Haru's existence. "Sometimes I need a professional opinion around here. DO you have a problem with it?"

"No, sir,"Mika smiled.

"Yeah, you don't."

Looking down on the ground, I found a sack of what looked like grocery items that were spilt out on the pavement below. I looked back at the kid, his breathing still calm as he struggled to stop his shirt from choking him. While somewhat entertaining, I dropped him back on the ground. Mika, still chuckling, picked himself and his groceries back up, hastily throwing potatoes, old parchment, and rice back into his sack.

"Thank you, sir. I promise it won't happen again,"Mika said.

"You bump into me again and I'll make sure to dangle you over a bridge next time,"I coldly threatened.

"No problem!"

* * *

I waited next to Crowley's coffin after that brief walk. Thinking about it, if Crowley could still sleep, then I definitely could, too. As a vampire, it didn't take long for me to get adjusted to surviving only off of blood and staying awake without rest for over an entire year. It also didn't take long for me to realize a rising situation. While Ferid was my sole arm's dealer, nothing could stop the fact that I specifically used .45 Long Colt and .38 Smith and Wesson rounds, both only manufactured in the US, which was an entire ocean away. Ferid even admitted in not thinking about the fact that I used only Western-era revolvers, causing a concern for me to learn how to use a sword.

During my time in Nagoya, Crowley, being the master swordsman he was, offered to teach me, even going so far as to force me outside and spar with him. Borrowing Chess' sword every time, I am not afraid to say that Crowley royally decked my ass every time I fought him. In the Past, I practiced only Fast Draw with single action firearms, ranging from single action revolvers, lever action rifles, bolt action rifles, hammered shotguns, as well as modern firearms and ranged weapons. Seeing as how I was already the Second Fastest Gun Alive, there was no need for me to learn Martial Arts or swordplay, rendering me nearly useless in melee fighting. While I could beat up the stray mugger, I would rather have a revolver on my hip. The hunting knife on my belt now was just for show and, possibly, a last resort. I have never had a problem so far that required me to fight anyone hand-to-hand.

Still, the ammo predicament was concerning. Crowley still forces me to learn how to use a sword. Apparently, it took more than lunging at your opponents with the intent of slashing them.

I repositioned myself in my chair, trying to take Crowley's subconscious tip on taking a rest. I crossed my legs and leaned back, closing my eyes. However, I then remembered that I might be crushing the Schofield behind my back. I sat back up and reached behind my coat, trying to grab the ivory butt of the Schofield. Weirdly enough, my hands couldn't grab it, only touching air and fabric. Annoyed, I stood up and threw off my jacket. I took off my rig and held it to face level, revealing only the two Frontiers. I dropped the rig and started patting down my waist, trying to see if maybe the Schofield fell down into my pants or was caught in my coat. I couldn't find it.

"Gaah!"I roared, kicking the chair and breaking it.

I lost the Schofield. Crowley was still sleeping, unaware of my anger.

"Where is it!"I muttered angrily to myself, looking around.

Two vampires marched inside of the room. One had blue hair and the other black. I angrily looked at them, not caring about what they had to say to me.

"Well!? What is it, dammit?!"I roared, Crowley still in a deep slumber.

"A group of kids have escaped,"said the black-haired vampire. "They used a gun."

Oh...maybe I do care.

* * *

The bodies of kids were covered in blood on the marble floor of the gilded hall. Blood pooled under each of the kids' bodies. Gunpowder and iron reeked inside of the hall, the scent familiar to that of-

"-the Schofield..."I muttered. "The boy stole...my...gun."


	7. Relentless

**A/N: I do NOT own Owari no Seraph**

 **Why the silver grips on every revolver? Think of the movie _Quick and the Dead_. **

* * *

Relentless

* * *

Even with the blanket around him, a deathly cold still took its hold over Yu. The boy shivered in his blanket, even though the jeep's heater warmed the interior. The stench of gunpowder and blood reeked in his clothes. Still with the death of his family fresh in his head, Yu shuddered in depression. He was so close-they were all so close to being free. If only that vampire didn't show up. The screams of his brothers and sisters dying in cold blood filled his ears. Overcoming those wails were Mika's last words to Yu.

"Don't let us die in vain..."

A tear started welling up in Yu's eyes. Yu started clutching the blanket around him, trying to get more comfortable, but the screams grew louder. The ringing in his ears overtook his senses. He huddled back against his seat. He could have saved Mika if only he would come with him. Why didn't he want to go with him?

"Hurry, go! Idiot!"

He couldn't stop himself from tearing up even more. An aura of melancholy permeated the inside of the Jeep, the soldiers inside feeling a little maudlin for Yu. If it wasn't for that vampire, Yu thought, his family could of survived. They should have survived. Yu cursed that wretched vampire in his mind. He could still smell the blood that was inside that room. He wanted desperately to kill him.

A hand laid on Yu's shoulder. Yu turned and was slightly comforted as the man next to him brought him closer. There were no words. Yu started crying into his blanket, trying to muffle the noise. The man, Guren Ichinose, softly patted his back. The soldiers around Yu, as well as Guren, all understood the pain of losing the people around them, family especially. Prophecy or not, tonight was a pyrrhic victory. All that needed to be done now was to get to Shibuya in one piece.

However, it was far from over.

"Do you hear that?"Sayuri suddenly said.

Yu stopped crying. Even through the metal walls of the jeep and the rough snowy road, a distinct roar could be heard through the wind. It wasn't a blizzard or a Horsemen of John. No, this roar sounded metallic and angry.

"A car engine?"Mito asked.

Guren winced, gripping his katana. "I know that sound...get ready."

Both Mito and Sayuri looked through the back windshield. Although it was far away from them, a car started tailing them. Every now and then, red hot flames bursted from behind it followed by smoke and blue flames. It didn't look like anything a vampire would drive; the most notable thing about it being the stack of superchargers on top of its hood. Floodlights on top of the car illuminated its path. The car was slowly advancing towards them.

"I know that car,"Sayuri gasped. "It's that man from a few years ago."

"Why is he following us?"asked Goshi, slowly pressing down on the Accelerator.

"It's because he's one of them,"Guren finally said.

* * *

"You're supposed to be here to help me, correct? Then get back that kid, unharmed."

Krul's words kept ringing through my ears as I marched out of that blood-stained hall. Scouts reported that there was a convoy of jeeps heading East to Tokyo, giving me a heading to chase. However, I needed to acquire a few more firearms, knowing my two Frontiers not being enough to face multiple squads.

During the Great Blaze and afterwards, the Vampires raided every JGSDF base and headquarters, collecting nearly every single firearm, vehicles, and explosive. Since they never needed firearms as every vampire fought with a sword and super strength/speed, I was inclined to use whatever the vampires chose not to destroy, giving me access to an unspeakably large armory. However, it wasn't like me to chase down a jeep convoy with a tank. No, I needed to be fast, precise, yet bring maximum firepower. With the Lusus Naturae already in my possession, that took control of "fast" and "precise". Now, I just needed the maximum firepower.

Opening two giant steel doors, I beheld racks of weapons all lined up neatly. The first weapon I grabbed was a standard issue HOWA Type 89, but dropped it in favor of the M4 Carbine. The next weapon I acquired was another import, courtesy of Ferid: the Marlin Model 1895CB chambered in .45-70 Government rounds. Next came the Miroku Side-by-Side 12-gauge shotgun, the H&K USP, and finally the M72 Law, the bazooka being used for Jeep destruction(given the kid wasn't inside it). I took as much ammo as I could fit inside the Lusus Naturae before hopping inside the car. I turned on the ignition, the roar of the augmented V8 echoing inside of the garage. Ferid hopped over, blood still stained in his silver hair.

"What's with all the fuss,"Ferid mused lightly.

I turned around, my hands gripping the wheel with ferocity. "Fixing your mistake, Silver Star Silas!"I roared.

"Oh, so you do remember~"Ferid leaned on my car. "And, what mistake would that be?"

"You gave them the map. You let them steal my gun!"

Ferid's eyes widened but his smirk was still plastered on his face. "Wha-! You're mad about that!? Let it go; I'll get you another gun!"

I rolled my eyes and scoffed. "Your sawed-off little runt of a Queen ordered me to find them. Now, whether or not you like it, your little stunt cost me my gun and those little bastards the Queen, for some reason, actually enjoys more than you! So, you better hope I find that kid who escaped or that little uh-head wound you got there won't amount to shit for what I have planned for you."

Even with Ferid's arm still leaning against the Lusus Naturae's door, I floored the car out of the driveway and straight to the outside world. The snow-laden environment immediately brought a rush of cold winter inside my car. Still driving, I took notice of the surroundings. There wasn't really much to look at anymore; no more humans living outside meant that the snow piled up everywhere, nearly covering the entire city that was next to us. The trees were all black and devoid of leaves. The Lusus Naturae's exhaust looked as if it blew out twice as much smoke as before. To me, it seemed as if I was in a Jack London Novel, only more darker. The night sky covered everything around me, but the occasional flames of the exhaust and the night-vision eyes I had grown accustomed to kept me seeing straight. I would say that I could see my breath in front of my face, but vampires don't make body heat.

The incident must have happened around half of an hour ago, giving the humans around a maximum of 40 miles between us. The Lusus Naturae was more than capable of chasing them down, but which road they were using was the tricky part. There was the main road, but knowing how intense of a mission it was to save a kid in prime Vampire Territory, the main road wasn't as likely an option as it would seem.

Driving alongside the main road for now, I did encounter a few stray jeep trails diverging into town that caught my eye. They were crafty; throw the enemy off with the coming snowstorm and a stray town. Smart, but futile. I kept driving straight through the town, looking for any more tracks or the jeeps themselves. I didn't find any, but the snow-covered town led to another road that led out into a blizzard-torn road. Luckily for me, the jeep trails carved into the snow made it easier for me to drive on the icy road. Nothing would keep me away from them.

With a new heading, I floored the Lusus Naturae forward to catch up to the convoy. In a matter of minutes, I could see them in front of me. I pressed down on the Accelerator and locked it into place, using my knee to control the steering wheel. As long as there weren't any sudden turns, I should be fine. I grabbed the M4, slamming the butt of the gun repeatedly on the windshield to break it. An immediate rush of snow and icy wind struck me, but I was undeterred when I aimed the gun at the incoming jeeps. I pulled the trigger, firing at them in full automatic. The bullets struck the jeeps, but didn't penetrate the armored plates. A door opened and a few arrows instantly came towards me. I kept firing with one hand while the other jerked the wheel to the right, evading the attack. The archer was mowed down, but others came to replace him. I evaded arrows and constantly burst-fired at the archers, doing my best to eliminate them.

With the M4 empty, I tossed it to the side and quickly slung out the LAW. Making sure my back was clear, I fired its single shot, taking out an entire jeep. I gave off a hoarse laugh as I tossed the LAW away, taking out the 1895CB. I opened the door and raised myself, smashing the car door window with my boot in order to use it as a step. I aimed the .45/70 at the scrambling archers. I rapidly shot them before they could fire at me, but an arrow behind me nearly threw me off of my door. I grabbed the door handle with my left arm and spun my head around my shoulder, seeing another jeep pressing on. I flip-cocked the 1985CB and aimed it behind me, firing its last shot a the right front tire. The jeep spun out of control as the bullet lodged itself inside the tire. However, that proved to be a mistake.

The jeep spun towards my car, colliding with it. The collision made me jump forward on my car, dropping the rifle in between the cracked windshield and the dashboard. I quickly looked ahead to notice that the road stayed straight. I hastily got up and on top of the car hood, taking hold of the stack of superchargers. There was one jeep (most likely the one with the kid in it) ahead of me while four others slowed down to tail me from behind and to my sides. The jeep that collided me was stuck grinding against the Lusus Naturae's behind, but it didn't falter the Lusus Naturae's direction enough to throw me off the road. Soldiers started clambering onto the vehicle, breaking out their katanas to try and gut me.

"Come at me!"I taunted, drawing my two Frontiers.

One soldier tried lunging at me (the poor idiot). I shot him twice before trying to shoot the others in a Doc Holliday-esque fashion. However, they were smart enough to duck behind my car and theirs. I ran out of ammo as two more soldiers stumbled towards me. The first soldier lunged at me; I narrowly dodged his strike, the sword cutting part of the supercharger in one clean slice. Enraged, I quickly grabbed him and threw him at the jeep behind me, the soldier crashing right through the windshield. The jeep spun out of control as the second started attacking me. I fell down on the hood trying to dodge a slash from his katana. I hastily drew out the USP and fired a round in his head. His body dropped on me as a third soldier came into view. I chucked the corpse on top of me at the soldier, knocking him off of my car. I sprung up and shot at a fourth and fifth soldier. I dove into my car to escape another soldier; the jeep on the right of the car bumped into the Lusus Naturae. I grabbed the Miroku and fired one of it barrels at the incoming soldier, filling him with 12 gauge birdshot. I lurched myself forward and aimed it at the jeep ahead of me, the doors of the jeep springing open.

I saw the soldiers inside. My eyes widened-they were the ones from Tokyo. I especially remembered the man to the right and the brown-haired girl with that funny-looking sword in her grip. The boy was next to him, but was suddenly shielded by the man when he decided to pull out my Schofield against me. I aimed The Miroku at him, but another jeep rammed into the Lusus Naturae, throwing my aim off and only managing to shoot his tire off. I re-centered myself, but was shot two times by the man, one bullet entering my shoulder and the other at my gut. I didn't drop-the pain lasted for a mere second before I started walking across the car hood to get to him. I could make the jump and tear the gun away from him.

However, just as I readied myself to jump to the jeep, a massive monster made of smoke shot towards me from the back of the jeep. I too out my knife and jumped back, lodging myself back into the car with my back hitting the dashboard and my head against the drive shaft. My legs were still out, but I couldn't duck myself back as the eel wrapped its jaws around the car, crunching it.

"Piece of puta shit-"

I slammed the knife against the roof of the monster's mouth, but that made it just want to bite down into it more. With its teeth just barely inches away from my face, my hands frantically grabbed the nearest gun it could grab. They reached for the 1895CB as well as a few .45/70 rounds. I quickly loaded a few rounds as the roof of the car started caving in on me. I cocked the lever and fired all of its shots randomly at the monster, the final shot at its eye finally making it vanish.

"Haha,"I roared. "Your little tricks won't work on-"

I looked ahead and saw my car driving towards a cliff.

"Oh...you clever bitch."I smirked.

* * *

Guren didn't want to admit it there, but looking at the shocked expression of that vampire made him realize that he was somewhat remorseful to see that particular person both as a human and a vampire in the span of three years. Still, that small man was to blame for the death of one of his most trusted soldiers when he was still human three years ago, and, not to mention, the 25 that have resulted this past year. Still, he wouldn't have guessed that the scared wastelander before him three years ago that hogtied Sayuri was to become the terror of Western Tokyo-The Fastest Gun Alive. _That would explain the gun_ , he thought as he held the ivory-handled quickshooter in his hands.

 _Did you become a vampire because humanity rejected you? How idiotic..._

"It was him,"Sayuri said. "It was that guy who killed those two vampires using a deck of cards...and then killed..." The soldier who died at the hands of the gunman when he was still human was the only soldier to ever have died by an incident with another human.

"The kids called him 'The Cowboy',"Yu piped up. "He always had that gun with him...until..."

"The Cowboy?"Mito sneered.

"Mika..." Just mentioning Mika's name sent a dagger through Yu's heart. "He said that that vampire claimed he was 'The Second Fastest Gun Alive' when he was human."

"Give me a break!"Mito scoffed. "If he really was that, he would've killed all of us!"

"He already killed twenty-five people,"Goshi said from the driver's seat. Still tired from that smoke monster he conjured, he kept his eyes on the road. "Not to mention the others."

The group instantly grew quiet, contemplating the losses that had occurred. Now miles from where they saw the Western Car drive off the road and into the forest below, the three jeeps that were remaining were all damaged. Two were running on blown out tires while one, a supply jeep, was working just fine. They could make it, but not before stopping to assess the situation they were in now. No doubt, the firefight they had most likely attracted more vampire attention, not to mention the supposed "Cowboy" that went down with his car. They wouldn't have to deal with him anymore; there was no way he could catch up to them in the state he was.

Guren stroked Yu's head as the remaining jeeps drove into the forest. Still with the firefight fresh in his mind, as well as a steel birdshot ball lodged in his arm. His demon should be able to heal the wound, but it might take a while to push the steel ball out of his arm. Yu seemed relatively and physically unarmed, but knew it would be a hard upbringing to turn him into a weapon against the vampires.

"Do you think he'll be back?"Shigure asked, concerned that they didn't see the vampire die.

"I doubt it,"Mito said. "Even if he is still alive, we're miles away from him."

"Twenty-five people..."Guren trailed. "He's a dangerous one, 'Second Fastest Gun Alive' or not, but seeing how he fights up close, I don't think he's a noble."

His squad looked up.

"All vampires know how to use a sword, but he only uses a gun. If he was a noble, he would be able to use a First-Class Weapon and easily wipe us all out. However, he resorted to using firearms...smart, considering how we wouldn't be able to fight back. Still, he didn't reload at all during the fight. It's clear he's not an experienced fighter."

"What're you getting at?"Goshi asked.

"If he comes back...we fight him up close when he runs out of ammo."

"Assuming he doesn't kill us all first,"Mito interjected.

"He won't,"Guren said.

* * *

I didn't sign up to become a vampire just to see myself get trapped in my own car, thrown off of a cliff and into the forest. Thinking about it now, I didn't really sign up to become a vampire...but that was besides the point. The violent crash knocked me back inside the car as the car kept accelerating through the forest, leaving a trail of charbroiled, broken trees in its wake. I tried to unlock the Accelerator pedal from its grasp, but a sudden crash beat me to it. I flung back into the wall of a storehouse, the car breaking through and destroying its engine. I was thrown onto the rubble-covered floor as the car nearly ran me over. I growled and kicked the car back, pushing the entire vehicle out of the storehouse.

I stayed on the ground for a minute before hastily getting up to examine the damage on the Lusus Naturae. The entire hood was caved in with the stack of superchargers broken off. I tore the hood away and threw it off to reveal the engine to be destroyed completely with sizable tooth marks along where the monster's jaw was at. I kicked the car again, breaking the tire off of it and destroying the car even more so. Those humans could be miles away at this point. I punched my arm through the crushed door and tore it off, revealing the insides of the car to be as bad as the exterior. I recovered the Frontiers, the 1895CB, and the Miroku, reloading each one as well as loading up as much ammo as I possibly could in my rig, pockets and belts. I found the knife lodged into the roof of the car. I sheathed it.

I cocked the rifle and started treading through the snow. I could catch up to them; I still had to remind myself about the enhanced strength and speed I possessed. I already blew out the tires of two out of three remaining jeeps, allowing me time to pinpoint their location. Undoubtedly, they would have to stop. I looked back at the wreckage of the Lusus Naturae, a magnificent beast now fallen. I let out a roar that echoed throughout the forest. Its death won't stop me from getting back what was mine.

In a matter of seconds, I sprinted through the forest and jumped back up on the road. I slung my rifle and aimed it around me, taking note of the tire tracks on the road. Going on all fours, I hovered my right ear above the ground and spread my fingers under the snow and around the asphalt.

"...they stopped driving...four miles out...they're on foot."

Thanking Tosahwi in my mind, I sprinted towards where I last heard the vibrations of the jeeps. Normally, this old Native American trick wouldn't work this far-it was even abandoned from being put into practiced due to its ineffectiveness, but apparently worked for the old Fast Draw Native American. He passed it onto me, which didn't improve or deteriorate my hunting trips, but finally found its use among my heightened senses.

It took around half of an hour, but I soon encountered fresh tire tracks. I came to a halt, dropping down onto all fours again under a snowbank. I couldn't hear them, but their jeeps trailed back down into the forest. I cautiously crept down into the snow, holding the rifle by its barrel and keeping the receiver above the snow. Silently creeping from tree to tree, I aimed the rifle at any sight of black or green. I sniffed the air, a different scent other than decay and asphalt suddenly hitting my nose. I got closer and lifted my nose in the air.

"Is that...an MRE?"I asked myself, shaking my head in disappointment. "Dumbasses. Should've known I can hunt anything in a ten mile radius."

A tear in the road introduced a great sniping spot, but where were the soldiers? I ran up behind the tear in the road, lifting a decent chunk off of the road about 20 feet up from the ground that overlooked the forest. I peered from behind a chunk of road as soon as I reached the top, peering out into the snow-filled forest. It wasn't hard to find the three jeeps parked in a circle with the rest of the human soldiers huddled around it. I took a head count; it seemed there were twelve soldiers left, including the kid, making thirteen. I snickered behind my rifle sights, looking for anything else I could do other than just shoot them one by one. The rifle sights lined up against a soldier.

"Thanks for standing still,"I snickered.

I pulled the trigger, sending the soldier crashing down onto the ground, his head now with a gaping bloody hole where the .45/70 went through. The soldiers looked up as I sniped another soldier, the crack of the shot echoing throughout the land. They scrambled for cover behind the jeeps, one of them narrowly missing a bullet to the head, instead getting hit in the shoulder.

"Damn, if only you could shoot cars to make 'em explode,"I muttered, cocking the lever back. "Maybe...if I..."

I aimed the rifle at the trees and fired two shots at a large branch, the snow being instantly knocked down by the resulting hit. The branch split off of the tree and fell down on the jeep before falling down towards the side where the soldiers were huddled. One of them leapt up and was instantly killed upon sight. However, that trick wouldn't work all the time. I reloaded my rifle and started walking down, confident that I could kill them all before they could jump me from afar. Even from this range, their little tricks wouldn't do much to hurt me.

As soon as I thought that, I was assaulted by the two girls from before. One was the brown-haired girl I hogtied while the other one, a black-haired girl, seemed to be new to me. I dropped the rifle and spun out my revolvers. They ran in between the trees, giving me a hard time to aim. It was then that I realized that I was surrounded by them. Suddenly, something sharp ran across my shoulder. I winced and looked down, revealing a sharp cut across my shoulder that seemed to be also emanating dissolving ash. I growled as I dodged more attacks by jumping up high, escaping a flurry of magic papers and kunai knives that darted around me at lightning-fast speeds. I laughed as I aimed my revolvers down and fired them all, striking both of the soldiers n the shoulder and legs. I dropped down and quickly reloaded my revolvers as another soldier, a red-haired girl, suddenly darted towards me. Still ejecting cartridges before replacing them, I dodged each girl's punches. She suddenly jumped up into the air and dove down with her fist out. I jumped back up as she slammed her fist in the ground, creating a massive shockwave that rattled the forest. I landed on a branch, balancing by putting my arms down and crouching, and observed the damage done.

"Wow,"I gasped wonderingly. "You really could have killed me there...but, don't hold yer breath."

She lunged up at me with an incredible burst of speed, but was shot back with a quick burst of my shotgun. The birdshot struck her back down, albeit with only a few pellets penetrating her vital areas. I landed back down and strolled up to her as she tried crawling away. The blood from her wounds slowly trickled out into the snow. The white environment turned blood red as I stepped towards her.

"You should be dead,"I said, pointing the barrel of the Miroku at her head. "Allow me to fix my mistake."

Something alerted my senses. I spun around and aimed my shotgun in the air, now confronted by three roaring tigers made of blue fire. I roared and dodged them, firing the last barrel of the Miroku before slinging out my rifle. I jumped back onto a branch before having to dodge away again once another tiger shot its way at me, followed by two blue balls of fire. I jumped away and looked down midair to see a rifleman aiming what looked like a WWII bolt-action rifle, only black and with a green cross along its side. He aimed his rifle, using a bayonet to better support his rifle that sat on the roof of a supercar.

"Oh, look,"I smirked. "You brought your marksman. This is gonna be interesting."

I aimed my rifle at him as I dropped back onto a few tree branches before shooting at him. He ducked the first four shots before returning fire with rapid shots of blue fire. I jumped down and started exchanging more shots with the marksman. I quickly ran out of ammo before I had to resort to the Frontiers to try and shoot him. The Marksman ducked under his car and darted behind the tree before scaling it rapidly to gain a vantage point. I fired another shot, trying to shoot him off of the tree before I ran behind another tree. I quickly loaded more rounds into my rifle before something caught my eye. I turned my head slightly to see the remaining soldiers bolt it towards the rifleman.

"Balls!"I roared.

I aimed my rifle at them, but was immediately under heavy fire that lit up the entire tree. It exploded behind me, sending bark and snow at me. I dove for the snow and returned fire, firing off five successive shots before having to run again from the rapid-fire balls of fire. They exploded on the ground where I once stood; I ducked behind another tree. Muttering incoherently, I aimed the rifle quickly at the jeep and rapidly shot its tires, disabling another jeep. I ducked behind the tree to escape more shots before quickly thinking of another plan. Counting to three in my head, I dove for another tree, dodging another burst of fire before diving for another tree. I zig-zagged my way quickly towards the marksman, closing the distance between us.

I jumped up, drawing my knife before throwing it at the Marksman. It struck his chest as I landed on top of him, aiming my Frontier at him. The rest of the survivors only stopped their escape.

"Shinya!"yelled the man holding Yu. I remembered his name being-

"Guren Ichinose...you have something of mine." I cocked the revolver and aimed it at Shinya's head. "I remember all too well of an incident much like this,"I snickered.

Guren clenched his fist and took a step forward. I stopped his advance with my second Frontier.

"I got two guns-" I spun them both. "-one for each of ya'. Take one step and you'll know what I mean."

"What do you-"

"-you know what the fuck I want,"I interrupted. "Where's the boy."

"You're not gonna-ARGHHH!"

A bullet entered his shin, causing Guren to fall down. "Now you see what I mean,"I disappointedly said. "I ain't gonna ask again or lover boy's gonna get it."

I forcefully dug my boot into Shinya's uniform, crushing his ribcage. He let out a groan as he tried punching my leg, but it didn't budge.

"So...where is he?"I roared.

Guren and his lackeys didn't say anything. I shot a round in the snow only an inch away from Shinya.

"I ain't gonna miss forever,"I smirked.

I felt something tear into my back. The impact didn't make me budge, but I looked behind me to see the kid on top of the supercar with the Schofield pointed at me, its steel barrel smoking. He glared at me with a ferocious poker-face.

He shot me.

"...ha...ha...hahahaHAHAHA!"I couldn't stop myself from laughing. "Did you really think you can outgun the 'Second Fastest Gun Alive'! DOn't make me-"

I felt another sharp pain strike my shoulder, only the impact pushed me off of Shinya and onto the supercar. I looked down to see a kunai knife impale piece of parchment onto me. Enraged, I pointed my gun at the black-haired gun, intent on murdering everyone now, but once I raised the gun, my finger couldn't pull the trigger. Something flowed into me from that piece of parchment paper, slowly spreading throughout my body and freezing it.

"Aaarghh!"I roared. "What did you do?!"

Guren smirked, the wound on his leg magically healing. "You know...for the 'Second Fastest Gun Alive', you really aren't aware of your surroundings. Maybe that's why you're in second place."

I snarled and tried freeing myself from my paralysis, but no amount of strength could make me budge.

"I figured, we could kill you as we did with every single one of your kind we've met so far...but you are the 'Second Fastest Gun Alive'."

"What're you gonna do to me?"Anger and frustration boiled inside of me; I tried shaking free.

"We're going to turn you into a Demon."

* * *

 **I didn't imagine this many views coming to this story. Looking back, I could of definitely wrote the first four chapters (Prologue, Under the Belt, Lassoed, Sleight of Hand) a lot better, but bear with me as I try to improve my writing. As I said, write a review.**

 **Now, onto another note: Of course, Thai's description of "Juarez" in the last chapter isn't complete. I'm thinking of doing a one-shot story about that fateful event that disrupted Thai's course into becoming the "Fastest Gun Alive", the title worn now by Howard Darby as honored by the WFDA (World Fast Draw Association). Let me know what you think.**


	8. Iron Bars and Dime Novels

**Authors Note: I do NOT own Owari No Seraph!**

 **WARNING! Thai gets a little Rated R/ Sexual with his colorful vocabulary during an encounter with a guard**

 **I try to make things non-OOC as much as possible. Bonus points if you catch the small references Thai has with a certain Western Gunslinger.**

* * *

Iron Bars and Dime Novels

* * *

"Is this where I am read my rights?"I weakly asked, fiddling with the inscribed chains wrapped around me. "Wouldn't be the first time."

When they hauled me back to Tokyo, they drained me of some of my blood, weakening me to the point where mere chains could hold me. Right now, I was chained to a metal table inside of what looked to be a brightly-lit blue interrogation room. The walls were lined with steel and concrete while the floors themselves were only concrete. Other than the metal table, there were two metal chairs, one being sat on by me and the other by Guren, who sat across the table from me. To my left was a mirror, but knowing where I was, it was definitely a one-way mirror. I was still somewhat paralyzed, the magic piece of paper still pinned on me. My weapons and hairpin were confiscated and most likely destroyed, much to my dismay. Guren only scowled at me.

"How're yer friends?"I asked. "Shot one in the chest with birdshot and stabbed your marksman just near his heart. Should be dead, right?"

"They're fine,"he coldly said. "Who are you?"

I guffawed. "I already told you that I'm the 'Second Fastest Gun Alive' as noted by my superiors and good friend, Howard Darby."

"Who's he?"

"The Fastest Gun Alive. Now, what's this about turning me into a Demon?"

Guren ignored my question. "How is it that one day, you're human, and the next, a vampire? Why did you attack us when we first met?"

Pondering about his question, I answered, "Well, if I remember correctly, I was just attacked by two vampires and was on edge. How is it that I was supposed to trust you guys to be who you really were?"

"We were human-"

"-adults that shouldn't have made it either way when the Virus hit."

"Then how did you make it?"

"Well, for me, it was probably an isolated case of natural immunity, but ten to fifteen people all huddled around wearing the same uniforms...that raises all kinds of questions. For all I knew, when you said 'Demon Army', I thought _Cult Army_...and I was not wrong."

"Who turned you?"he asked.

"Count Dracula. Bit me right on the neck because I forgot my garlic necklace."

I was suddenly clocked right in the face by a quick right punch from Guren. I licked my lips and started chuckling as Guren returned to his seat.

"Good one,"I wheezed.

"You don't look like a normal vampire, so I must assume you're a noble of some sort. You killed _40 people_. You deserve to be put down."

I leaned in closer to Guren, grinning to show my fangs in the light.

"Amigo,"I softly said. "What's the use of looking on the gloomy side of everything? The laugh's on me this time. Is the jail at Santa Fe any better than this? This is a terrible place to put a fellow in."

He smirked.

"What's so funny?"

"You're right. The laugh's on you. I'm not just gonna let you get the easy way out."

My own smile disappeared into a frown of disgust. "What's this about turning me into a Demon?"

"Even if you aren't a Noble, maybe the 'Second Fastest Gun Alive' can still be transformed into a weapon."

A "tsk" left my mouth as I ground my teeth together.

"So that's the rumor I've been hearing from field reports. Demon Weapons ain't exactly a figurative expression, I take it?"

"You'll make a good revolver."

Two soldiers who I didn't recognize suddenly came inside of the room. I noticed one with something familiar bulging from his pants pocket as they marched over to me. They unhooked the chains on the table and forced me up, gripping their arms onto me with much ferocity. I tried fighting, but that piece of paper stuck onto me made it to where I couldn't use my newly acquired skills. A leather belt was placed around my mouth, keeping me from biting anyone. I thrashed around in their strong grips, but the two soldiers didn't budge.

"People thought me bad before!'I roared. "But, if ever I should go free, I'll let them know what bad means!"

I was led down a dark hall lined with stone. It was barely lit, the light illuminating the stone and walls. On each side were cells with large iron gars serving as gates. Inside most of them were either one or two vampires who were most likely going through the same treatment as I was going to be presented with. They marched me down towards a cell that was already occupied by another vampire who looked to be here already for two days. His eyes were sulking, his entire body crouched into a corner. One of the soldier's opened the gate while the second one pushed me inside, leaving the chains on me before removing the spell craft. I immediately ran to the cage bars once they closed it.

"Let me out of here, dammit!"I growled.

"Quiet."

They pushed me back before marching towards the exit. Although my spirit was hurt, I smiled knowing I pick-pocketed the man's playing cards without him realizing it. At least I would have something to toy around with until I starve to Demonic levels. I opened the deck and took the cards out, Charlie-cutting the cards to feel the deck. A sight for sore eyes, I couldn't help but remember all of those cringy moments when I kept showing magic tricks to everyone. Those were dark times, especially that Sleight of Hand deal I had with Urd Geales.

"Who are you?"asked the vampire, his tone weakened and his body unmoving.

"Thai,"I answered, putting the cards away. "The Fastest Gun you'll meet, most likely."

"You...you're that human who did that-"

"-don't remind me,"I silenced him.

"Do you have a trick on getting us out of here?"the vampire asked.

I went on my knees and knocked on the ground. It was rock solid stone and concrete, possibly reinforced with steel beams. The back of the cell was rock solid too, but I was betting it led to another hall, or even just outside. The cage bars themselves were reinforced with spell work and were unable to be broken apart. I kicked the bars with my foot before I turned to the vampire.

"Tsk. I'm still...workin' on it."

I slumped back down, trying to catch my breath. Hunger slowly approached me and had me in its vile clutches. However, I still had hope; I was still a pretty capable person. I've hunted bears, shot coins midair in less than half of half of an eighth of a second, and devised tricks that made it seem like I'm performing real magic; who's to say I can't think of a way out of prison? Still, no Fast Draw Artist, Mechanic, or Native American Tracker have ever prepared me for this.

"Have you tried anything?"I asked.

The vampire was in worse condition. His hair was drooping, his face was paler than before. His eyes were an emotionless blur to me. While vampires were infamous for having the deadliest glare as their normal face, but he was broken, starving, there were already red markings crawling up to his face.

"I've clawed and tried breaking my way out of here. Nothing worked,"he said.

"Bummer,"I sighed in defeat.

I took out the cards and started shuffling them.

"Poker? Blackjack?"

"No,"he coldly said.

"Whatever, ya' dick."

Deciding to play Pyramid, I formed a pyramid on the ground, starting with one card followed by a row of two cards in front of it and so on until the seventh row had seventh cards. Putting the rest of the deck below the pyramid, I started looking for two exposed cards that add up to 13, using both the rows and the deck to help me eliminate the entire pyramid. As the game unfolded, Jack of Hearts going to Two of Spades and 6 of Diamonds going to 7 of Clubs, I contemplated my means of escape. The most obvious one that came into mind was that I could just throw a bunch of cards at an incoming guard, incapacitating him to where I could drag him towards the bars and sink my fangs into his neck, draining him to gather enough strength to break out of here. However, even though I can most likely throw a card at high velocity even in my weakened state, it probably won't even penetrate their uniforms enough to pierce skin. If anything, it would agonize me even more to see blood drip from the wounds and away from my reach.

It was a dead game. I muttered a curse before resetting the Pyramid. If I had my hairpin, I could maybe have hit the guard in the neck, or even try and pick the lock, but the hair hanging down the back of my head made me remember that it was gone...again. I couldn't trip the guard by grabbing his leg; they were smart enough to stay in the middle of the hall and nowhere near the bars.

My hunger slowly started eating away at me as it was another failed game. I pounded my fist on the ground and reformed the pyramid. My mind started succumbing to the slow hunger, the pain unsettled by the lack of blood. I tried to keep my mind off of it by playing the game and thinking of more ways to escape. Maybe, if I could taunt the guard back here again, I could lift the keys from his jacket. Still, then there was the matter of trying to escape the entire building without getting caught. On my own without a gun or even a knife, I was a stray deer in a hunter's cabin. I would need something to cover my escape, maybe the vampires in the cells.

Suddenly, I heard the door on the end of the hall open, most likely the Soldier wanting his damn cards back. Quickly, I gathered the cards and stuffed them inside of the untied straightjacket they stuffed me inside of, hoping they wouldn't suspect me in stealing the cards. I leaned back on the stone wall, grinding my teeth against each other when the pain hit me. I looked up to see who was coming and saw Guren. Desperate, i threw myself at the bars and shook them.

"Gimme a drink, goddammit!"I roared.

"You want a drink?"Guren simply replied.

I nodded up and down, growling.

A metal canister struck me in the face, knocking me back slightly. I picked the canister up, twisting the container open before sniffing inside to reveal its contents. I growled, twisting the cap back onto the canister before throwing it behind me, annoyed to find out that he threw me-

"-water!? You psychopath! I need blood!"I roared.

"You asked for a drink,"Guren smirked sarcastically. "You should learn to word your requests better. This isn't the Wild Wild West anymore."

A growl escaped my throat, my diseased mind finding ways to exact my revenge. "I'm aware."

"I need that back,"he said, pointing at the water canister.

I simply raised my eyebrow. "Then take it,"I replied.

The other vampire stood up, his foot on the water canister. I snickered and stepped back, my arms out and eyes shining. Guren, now scowling at me, decided to walk off, probably knowing that trying to get one canister wasn't worth getting into senseless trouble with two vampires. Honestly, I was glad he didn't decide to barge his way in here; there was no way for me to attack Guren without getting my head lopped off. I knew I couldn't count on the vampire behind me to watch my back. Escaping would have also been impossible with the LTC up my ass. His beating heart didn't make my hunger feel any better. I needed to find a way out of here before I lose control of what sanity I had left.

The vampire slumped back down, his obvious signs of hunger growing as much as his anger. I had maybe only two days until I would become as damned as him; I might as well attempt one of my plans.

Uncovering the cards, I took one out and examined it. It obviously wasn't factory new, but the plastic feel of the card and the still-crisp edges made me think assume that the cards were still somewhat new. I smelled it again, smelling more of the plastic scent than a human's. Like a frisbee, I placed the card in between my index and middle finger, curling the card back towards my wrist, and flicked my wrist forward. The card only flew a foot before whirling off in the air like a piece of paper. I tried again with three more cards, failing even more with each card thrown.

"Grrrr!"I growled. "Stupid pieces of-"

A metaphorical lightbulb lit the dark recesses of my brain. These cards were indeed stupid pieces of plastic and cardboard, but like all cards manufactured around the world, these stupid cards were all coated with-

"-nitrocellulose..."I muttered.

I looked back at the canister idly lying on the stone ground. Just the thought of a piece of the plan sent a smile across my face.

"Hey,"I said to the vampire. "You wanna hear a story?"

He continued to stare at me in disbelief, probably wondering why I was so giddy.

"Long time ago, there was this prisoner locked up, but he weren't no ordinary prisoner. He conceived of a way to break himself out of prison by conceiving an explosive made of cards, water, and heat. He successfully escaped and lived to tell the tale about it."

If he knew how the bomb would really work, it would throw off my entire plan, possibly getting me killed in the process. However, just that little yarn of a story got him convinced enough to follow through with the plan.

"Really?"he asked.

"Yes,"I smiled. "We're getting out of here...if we get a lighter."

Shit. The bomb worked because the prisoner had a kerosene stove to act as a heat source, but being incredibly dangerous vampires, we were reduced to having nothing in our cell. The cards and water canister were pure lock, but maybe I could snatch a lighter off of a soldier.

"Know any of the guards who smoke?"I asked.

The vampire stayed silent. "There's one, but she's the most ignorant human I've ever met. Every time she walked down the hall, the stench of cigarette smoke clouds the air."

I clicked my tongue. "That'll just make it easier. We'll keep this under wraps for now, but if you see her, give me a sign."

* * *

Two Days Later...

I was losing hope. The vampire didn't make a move, only looking up at the occasional guard, but they were all men. Card games couldn't stop my mind from being distracted from my endless hunger. With every passing guard, I reached my hand out and made an effort to grab them, not realizing that my hand was still a reasonable distance away from the guards. My fangs would gnaw on the cage bars. The pain that arose multiplied with each hour; my hand gripped my stomach, growls escaping with each breath.

Suddenly, I felt the water canister roll to my leg. Annoyed, i kicked it back, looking at the vampire who so carelessly let it roll to me. He flicked his head slightly towards the incoming sound of boots coming down the hall. I stood up quickly, seeing an incoming guard that made her way down the hall. The two of us vampires were the only ones here after they cleaned out the other cells yesterday, making this a better attempt at getting her attention. As told by the vampire, she reeked of cigarette smoke with a hint of lunch.

"Musta!"I hollered.

The guard kept walking, her eyes not even averting towards me.

"Malaki ang susu mo,"I snickered in a devious tone, finally getting her attention.

Still with a permanent scowl, she carefully approached me, keeping a safe distance between us two.

"Didilain ko ang tingil mo,"I continued saying with a long grin plastered on my face, trying to see if her curious side would take over.

"What are you saying, vampire?"she asked, making me snicker again.

"Oh...I was just contemplating those two giant melons on your chest. My God...I have never seen such majesties in this side of the Apocalypse." I gave off a short whistle.

Clearly disgusted, she stomped towards me and grabbed me by the throat, jamming the butt of her sword on my sternum. I nearly gagged, but smiled to gain the attention of her eyes so my hands could do their magic.

"I dare you to say that again, you pervert!"she screamed.

I needed more time; I felt the lighter in her jacket pocket. "Arghh..."I muttered in pain, "...đồ lồn què..."

She slammed my face on the gate as my hands retracted quickly with her lighter in my grips. "What did you say!"she roared

I didn't mean to blurt that out. "I don't want to tell you. You'll just hurt me some more."

She growled and threw me back. "The next time you say perverted things like that, I'll have you castrated!"

"...noted,"I smiled. "You are one silver tongued devil, you."

She stomped away, sheathing her sword as the vampire crawled his way towards me. He grimaced, also disgusted by my own tactics.

"You almost made me believe that you were human,"he said. "Were you this disgusting before?"

I smiled and held up the lighter. "No...but I had a boyfriend who would talk like that at me."

Still disgusted, he soon realized what I held in my hands.

"Let's get to work. We probably only have a little while until the guard comes back."

Nitrocellulose, when mixed with cardboard and water that is then heated up by an external source of heat, can become a deadly, lightweight explosive. The story went two ways: the prisoner tried escaping with this method or wanted to kill himself before he was sent to be executed. Either way, it worked for him, so why not for us? I ripped up the cards to pieces before stuffing them inside of the water canister, shaking the contents up upon closing the canister. Leaning the canister against the wall, I opened the Zippo lighter and flicked the wheel, sparking a flame that I hope would last just enough for the bomb to explode. I set it under the canister before the two of us sat back against the bars as far as we could. We knew it wouldn't kill us, but up close, it would be deadly...at least, that was what I told him when crafting it.

We waited, letting the flame heat the bottle up. Inside, I was hoping that the guard's lighter was full to the brim, otherwise this plan would definitely not work at all. I was personally giving this plan a fifty percent chance of success. Because it was stainless steel, I wasn't afraid that it would melt a hole through the canister, but I knew that the bomb wouldn't detonate like this. Even if it did heat up all the way, it needed one final step for it to become a bomb.

Faking my disappointment, I sighed and put my hand over my eyes.

"It's not going to work...is it?"the vampire asked.

"...I forgot that the prisoner used a little gasoline to ignite the damn thing."

" _Tsk_. What a waste of time!"

"Do you have a better idea?! I thought not, now take the damn bottle off the heat. I got another idea."

"Why do I have to do it? It's your stupid plan,"he retorted.

I took my hand off my face and turned my face to him. "I'm not that disoriented to beat the shit out of you. Now get!"

I kicked him off of the wall before nonchalantly placing my hand over my eyes to cover them from the incoming debris the explosion would set off. Maybe, this might just work if the vampire actually did what he was told. I could hear him grumbling about how "water isn't an explosive material" and that "playing cards aren't explosive". I smiled, closing my eyes as I heard him lift the container up. Suddenly, I heard a voice behind me. It was the guard!

"What do you think you're-"

A sudden blast of fire, debris and smoke hit me. Instantly, I toughed through the burns and scars as I ran forward, still with my hand over my eyes. I held my breath as I rolled through the hole made through the cell wall, nearly hitting my head against smoldering brick. I started laughing as fresh air filled my dead lungs and fluorescent lighting filled my vision. Seconds later, I was running down the room as an alarm blared throughout the entire building. The door opened, an unassuming, unarmed soldier entering through with a stack of papers in his grasp. I gave off a hearty laugh as I snatched him from his feet and pinned him against a wall, sinking my fangs quickly in his neck before draining him of his blood. Taking nearly half of a minute, I noticed the door on the other side of the room breaking open, armed soldiers running through the doorway. I groaned and chucked the dead body in my grasp at them, knocking the group back as I made a speedy escape. I vaulted towards the stairwell, breaking open the door before shutting it behind me. I broke a small aluminum piece of the stair railing before jamming it through the handles of the door, effectively locking it for the time being.

I sped down the stairs and broke open the door, suddenly being confronted by an army of guards that had their katanas and bows aimed at me. I ran to the side, dodging numerous arrows before speeding towards a lone soldier. I grabbed his armed arm before throwing him down onto the ground, tearing away his black cape from his uniform. I draped it around my head as I sprinted towards a window, aiming to escape through it. Dodging another volley of arrow-fire, I threw myself against the window, falling a few stories before landing on the ground on my feet. Before the soldiers around me could react, I sped away towards the nearest exit I could find, vaulting over walls and vehicles before escaping through the underside of what looked like a bridge.

It was at this point that I knew I couldn't just keep running towards the walls; they would be waiting for me there. I needed to go incognito, at least until I could safely make it to the wall. There was also the fact that I was devoid of a UV arm band, making me exposed to the Sun's harmful UV radiation. Normal clothes should allow me to pass off, but not for long. Already, just seeing the light made me sick in my stomach. Ducking in the shadows, I soon made it to what seemed to be a residential district that was already in the process of being evacuated. Soldiers were everywhere, but I quickly scaled a skyscraper before entering through an open window.

Upon entering the building, I found myself in an apartment complex. I broke into one of the buildings, looking around to see if anyone was home. Luckily for the people who lived here, they weren't here to see me crawl in. I ditched the prisoner garments and stolen cape in favor of the resident's clothing. Whoever they were, they didn't have many clothes that could fit me, resorting to only sweatpants, a black t-shirt, a large jacket and a pair of sunglasses. I hid a few kitchen knives inside of my jacket as well, hoping I wouldn't need to use them. Pulling the hood of the jacket over me, I quickly jogged down the hall and down the stairwell.

I quickly tried blending into the crowd, covering my fangs as the unassuming masses of people crowded around me. Even with all the clothes and the sunglasses on, I still felt the effects of the Sun on my face. I stopped myself from wincing from the pain, trying to toughen myself through it as we slowly made our way near the wall. It must have been the most painstaking thing I have done as we slowly made our way for what felt like ten minutes of just stumbling around. I quickly lost my temper.

"Would you fucking hurry up!"I roared.

The crowd went silent upon looking at me. They saw the fangs.

"Oh shit,"I muttered.

A guard rushed at me with his katana. I quickly flung open my jacket and threw a knife at him, striking him in the chest before I jumped up from the scrambling crowd. I leapt towards the wall, breaking through the concrete wall with my fist. It was painful, but I had to scale it this way. Leaping up with each bound, I kept dodging arrow strikes as I made my escape. With one final leap, I made it to the top of the massive wall, meeting a few armed soldiers while landing. I threw another knife at a soldier before running behind him, using him as a human shield against another soldier's attack before throwing both of them off of me. A third soldier ran towards me and gashed me across the chest. I yelped in pain before taking out my last knife. I ducked under his next slash and sliced his quad before spinning around and stabbing his nape. The pain of the sun growing with each second, I leapt off of the wall as more soldiers came, dodging their attacks while falling hundreds of stories below onto the street. I landed, breaking a car in two before painfully running off again into the distance.

"Sayonara, suckers!"I laughed, trying my best to keep my speed.

* * *

 **Sorry with the late upload. College ain't exactly always friendly when it comes to personal time. As for the plausibility of the card bomb, Thai does recount an actual suicide/escape attempt? that happened in 1930. However, some sites said that nitrocellulose isn't used anymore in modern day Playing Cards and that the nitrocellulose was found only on red ink, making for the bomb to require many decks of red cards only. If you've seen Bicycle Playing Cards, normal decks have red backs. As for the argument that nitrocellulose isn't used today by card companies...for now, let's just say yes.**

 **Ever get that story idea and you know what's gonna happen and what's the plot, but you can't write it as good as you hoped? Same. While I know what is going to happen, thanks to an already existing universe and plot (I wonder which one?), but, for those who have stuck on with this interesting concept, what do you guys think about the story so far? I know this sounds a little lazy, but I really want to know if you guys have any suggestions you want me to throw into the story or elements you want changed/taken out.**


	9. A Force To Reckon With

Author's Note: As always, I do NOT own Owari no Seraph. leave a review, comment, question, suggestion and favorite the story. The last chapter was a bit rushed so it may be revised. And NO, this story is NOT dead.

* * *

A Force to Reckon With

* * *

Survivor settlements were instantly raided upon discovery by vampires before they were either patched over into vampire nests or had the survivors taken back to Sanguinem. In this case, there was a "structure" made of a fallen over skyscraper that fell horizontally over a shorter building, forming a kind of "Wasteland Fort" that provided a strategic point to where the vampires could fend off against JIDA incursions before help arrived. The human livestock there would live in the lower spaces, occupying any "rooms" made by debris, "donating" their blood whenever the vampires ordered them to. The deal was that they would get protection from the Horsemen in exchange for blood donations. In it's own twisted and morbid way, it made sense at the time.

Livestock would usually lie around, unable to escape to Shinjuku or Shibuya due to the Horsemen running around the streets. Sometimes, if the vampire guards would allow it, they would run out towards a street corner and play a game of "ball on the wall" and other mediocre games as such. Still with worry of Horsemen attacks and punishments if breaking the rules set by the vampires, they would make sure to never leave that corner unless they were heading back towards the "fort".

Like any other day, they were throwing a dirty tennis ball on the wall before attempting to catch it to throw it back again. However, something wasn't right. A strange smell blew through the evening wind. It was disgusting, to say the least. Their stomachs wrenched and one was even about to pass out. It was like burning flesh, a rancid and putrid odor that was suddenly accompanied by an ominous light that lit itself between the destroyed buildings of the street. One kid decided to check if it was another monster, peering out from behind the building corner to take a peek from where the smell and light were coming from.

What he saw froze him in place. The other kids followed suite, trying to pry their friend off of the building, but then they caught a glimpse of the horrid sight. They stumbled back, what they're seeing being horribly worse than any monster or vampire they have ever seen.

It was a literal walking inferno. The white-hot flames shot towards the skies, wrapped around what looked like a black skeleton with charred flesh hanging barely by its muscles. Its skin was like glowing obsidian, black, disgusting flesh roasting with each minute. The abdomen was reduced to nothing but the spine and hip bones, all charred. However, that wasn't what froze those kids in place. In the middle of what they perceived to be its face was a pair of glowing eyes, fire burning from its sockets. They fixed their gaze at the kids, its legs stumbling towards them. A low growl escaped its fanged mouth as its stumpy, bony legs stepped eagerly towards the group of frightened kids. It reached its bony hand towards the kids, but the blazing heat of the fire scared them back. The thing growled again and retracted its hand.

"Where...is...the...fort,"it grunted.

The kids, deeply frightened down to the bone, pointed with their shaking arms towards the direction of their home.

"Ari...ga...to,"it spoke.

It lumbered off towards the fort, the flames on its scaly back enveloping it like a pair of demonic wings. Whatever it was, it made its way to the fort, giving even the vampires concerned looks. However, even through their dull expressions, they knew exactly what it was. One of them approached it, unafraid of the mass of fire and bone. The vampire carried what looked like a fire blanket, throwing it over the inferno and miraculously dousing it down to nothing. He and another vampire dragged what was wrapped inside of the fire blanket inside of the fort, taking no mind in dragging him through rock, debris and glass. Finally under cover, the vampire guards surrounded the fire blanket, an animalistic groaning resonating from its opening.

A hand came through. However, it was the bones of the hand, stitched together by lanky muscle that slowly grew in size with each second. Tissue became muscle and muscle was wrapped under tan skin, the hand now complete. A vampire handed the hand a bottle, which was whisked away in lighting-speed back inside the blanket. A slight, hoarse laughter came through, accompanied by the sound of metal being punctured. Drops of blood splattered on the ground, more laughing being heard.

"Why were you in flames,"one of them asked. "Did you get attacked?"

The bottle rolled out as something emerged from the fire blanket. It was another vampire, its face being reformed as its hands wrapped the blanket around his body, covering any exposed body parts. Upon seeing who it was, the vampires took a step back. The vampire's face, the hole in its cheek regenerating from tissue, muscle, and skin, suddenly glared at them. He took a deep breath before letting out a lazy yawn. He appeared to be muttering to himself in another language, closing his eyes. He seemed to be talking to himself, a common thing for this particular vampire to do.

"Lord Thai..."one of them piped up, causing the vampire to stop his mumbling and look dead at them. "We heard you were captured. How did you escape!?"

The vampire let out a hearty laughter. "Well...they've never met me. Now, are y'all just gonna stand there, or am I gonna be walkin' around naked! Get movin'!"

The vampires started scrambling, looking around if an extra uniform or any clothes his size were standing around. The vampire, meanwhile, brushed his hair back into place, still annoyed about the miles he had to walk as a burning mess. He turned around, facing a wall, but looked at it as if someone was standing right in front of him.

"I told you I'd make it,"he fiendishly smiled.

There was a slight pause before he spoke softly again.

"It wasn't like I could barge in there and steal it back, dammit!"he softly scolded.

* * *

"The kid's gone,"I said to Krul, kneeling down on the throne. "I nearly got out with my life in-AAAARRRGGGHHHH!"

Krul dashed forward from her throne and plunged her hand through my chest, grabbing my heart. I coughed up blood as I dropped down onto all fours, gripping the gaping hole in my chest while looking up. Krul had my heart in her clutches. "You shouldn't have come back at all then,"she scowled.

I hissed. "You take out your own mistake on me!?"

"The mistake of letting you become a vampire that can't even fight with a sword?"

I could already feel an even more intense pain grow inside of me. "No...grrr...your mistake of letting Ferid touch your favorites."

She slammed my heart back in me with such sheer force that I was sent flying back. I let out a sarcastic, hoarse laugh before standing myself back up. Krul, even if she was as tall as a small child, was not someone to deal lightly with, especially without my guns.

"What do you mean 'favorites'?"she asked, still with a fierce temper.

"Since when do you bat an eye personally when it comes to a bunch of kids that escape? We got hundreds of 'em in here, but a pack of runts ticks you off? Ask me, and we've got something interesting to say to the Progenitor Council."

She only bore her fangs and scowled.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, my Queen...I got a few guns to see to..."

Ferid was waiting on the other side of the door, leaning against the door with Crowley by his side. Upon sight, I couldn't help but note that I missed seeing their two ugly mugs, but I kept that to myself. I closed the door behind me and the three of us walked out of the capital building and back into the dark streets of Sanguinem. I never thought I would miss its dark, gothic structure, but more importantly, I never thought I would lose my guns and car.

"The Lusus Naturae?"I asked.

"We found it, but there's not much we can do to fix it,"Crowley said. "It's not like fixing a faulty brake pad..." Crowley fixed an annoyed gaze at Ferid, who only smiled and gestured with the ever familiar "I don't know."

"Damn shame,"I sighed. "Did you get what I asked for at least?"

Ferid handed me a familiar pistol; the Fast Draw Peacemaker. "Haha,"I smiled. "Finally, some good news. Now, all I need is to replace the hammer on you."

"So, how did you escape?"Ferid asked.

"Yeah? You were reported to be chained to the back of a jeep heading to Tokyo. How did you get out?"Crowley added.

I chuckled, thinking about the massive grief I caused for the general public back in whichever city I was inside of. I could only imagine the looks on their faces.

"A magician never reveals his secrets, gents,"I smirked. "However, between us three, it just took a deck of cards, crafty hands, and a sucker. After that, it was just a matter of getting out alive."

"I still find it unbelievable that you walked two miles while _on fire_ ,"Ferid mused. "Maybe, our dear Cowboy is telling another tall tale~?"

"Grr...even if it wasn't two miles, the pain was unbelievable. One minute. I'm running like a linebacker and the next I burst into flames. I thought I was gonna die."

I shuddered slightly, remembering how red-hot flames suddenly ignited on my clothes the second I lost sight of that infernal city.

"Well, what's happened since I was gone?"I asked, slipping the Peacemaker under my belt.

"Nothing~"Ferid smiled, wrapping his arm around me. "It's only been a couple days."

"Really? No rescue party? I was really by my lonesome?"I wondered out loud sarcastically.

"We were thinking about it, but then you managed to escape. However, that kid Ferid nearly killed is still alive,"Crowley sighed. "Mikaela, I think his name was...anyway, he became a vampire."

"...really? By who...oh God. Please don't tell me it was you, Ferid,"I winced.

Ferid only ruffled through my hair. "Nope. It was Krul this time. Wow; first Urd Geales turns you and now Krul turns little Mika-kun! What an interesting time we are in."

"Very,"I groaned, brushing Ferid's arm away from me.

"Hm? Is Thai-kun getting jealous?"Ferid tried to be a jerk as always, but this was one of the rare moments that he didn't annoy me.

"Pfft. I got better things to worry about than some little runt running around. I gotta get me another pistol. You got anymore, Ferid? Maybe a Ruger? Oh, I'm also gonna be needing more .45 Long Colt rounds."

Both Ferid and Crowley looked at each other, Crowley with his signature careless look and Ferid with his devious smile. It was obvious the two Progenitors thought of me while I was captive, but of what, I would find out once they turned back to me. Maybe they found a way to make a pistol in the likeness of a First-Class Weapon. I would care for a Wyatt Earp Buntline that shot giant balls of fire, but the looks they gave me once they turned back to me somewhat disappointed me. My throat worked, a gulp escaping my closed mouth.

"How's Thai's swordplay?"Ferid curiously asked Crowley.

 _Oh shit._ _Don't you do this to me, Crowley._

Crowley smirked, crossing his arms and closing his eyes while doing so. "His form is lazy, almost like a scared animal. His reaction speed is incredibly fast, but easily overpowered by even a basic attack."

"Y-You're too strong, that's why!"I retorted, stomping my boot on the ground. "Guns and knives are my trade-not swords! If I were to fight you using my revolver, you'd have a lead slug in your head before you-"

My hands reacted faster than my mind could comprehend. Once I realized what was happening, I quickly aimed the steel barrel of the revolver; my other hand fanned the modified hammer before I pulled the trigger. The crack of the shot echoed throughout the dark recesses of Sanguinem. Crowley's sword was sent flying out of his hand, but the sword managed to gash a scar across my shoulder and chest. Ferid started applauding and even clapped lightly, much to the confusion of the vampires that surrounded us. Crowley, still with a smirk on his face, caught his sword, even with the revolver cocked and aimed at him.

I smiled. I de-cocked the pistol and brought it towards my body, pointing the barrel up in the air. Keeping the grin on my face, I twirled my gun in a forward spin, followed by a backwards spin. Barely moving my arm, the gun twirled around my finger rapidly as the gun spun forwards and backwards alternatively. I did a forward flat spin before a backward flat spin, spinning the gun in an arc backwards and forwards after. I brought the gun back to my side and twirled it forwards, backwards and forward again, ending the little performance by flipping the gun around and holstering it in my belt.

"Fast enough for ya?"I mocked.

"Point proven,"Crowley said, not even being taken aback by the sheer speed of that quickdraw,"But, what happens when you don't have time to reload?"

"..."I pondered, knowing that he had a point. During my earlier encounter with Guren's squad, I did manage to reload while dodging stray punches, kicks and elbows, but even then, I only faced one soldier out of many. "Well...hasn't happened to me so far."

"It shouldn't stop you from being so careless,"Crowley sighed, crossing his arms.

"Gah! That's the damn reason why I need at least two pistols!"I growled. "Ten to twelve bullets in total, enough for a squad of five and ten!"

"What happens when there are more?"

"I...I guess you're right..."

"Come to think of it,"Ferid said. "You still fight like a human, don't you?"

I raised my eyebrow, confused by Ferid's remark.

"What do you mean by that?"I asked.

"Urd Geales turned you, meaning you have the strength of at least a Tenth Progenitor,"Ferid started explaining, "But, so far, I can see none of that since you always use that gun to fight for you. With a sword, you can do much more!" His eyes widened and his smile grew, giving me an enthusiastically bloodthirsty grin that chilled my spine.

"Untapped power, eh?"I rubbed my chin.

True, I hadn't really thought about the power I possessed due to Urd Geales "generosity". However, there was always one thing I was concerned about that seemed more important to me than raw power: draw time. While I had seen vast improvements in the speed and accuracy of my draw, noting it as if time itself has slowed down just for me, it wasn't fast enough for me. I had an inkling to settle the score once and for all with a certain pale-haired vampire. He probably already knew as he turned me, but Urd just gave me a deadly upgrade.

Suddenly, we heard fighting break out from just beyond where the barracks were. My contemplation broken, we kept hearing sounds of fighting and shouting. Curious, we made our way towards the sound of the fighting, Ferid tapping my shoulder lightly to notify me to break up whatever was happening. I pulled out my Peacemaker and cocked it back, stepping ahead of the two Progenitors to check ahead for anything concerning.

Out in a courtyard, there was a group of vampires with their swords out pointing towards a certain blonde-haired boy. His eyes were still blue as the day's sky, but his face grew angrier with each vampire coming to confront him. There was a sword in his clutches, but blood spilled on the courtyard's path made it clear that training day didn't really go as expected. Seriously, it's only been a couple of days since his friends were brutally murdered before he was turned himself but the Queen thought they would hand him a sword and expect him to learn?

Before either the vampire guards or Mika would brutally maim each other, I fired a shot in between them, averting all gazes towards me.

"Mind tellin' me why I leave you all for three days and everything's gone to shit?"I bluntly asked, keeping my gun out.

All the vampires' eyes widened, most likely due to the fact that I was reported to be either dead or captured, but Mika's was most likely of regret. The thief who stole the Schofield off of me was now in the vicinity of an extremely aware killer.

The captain stuttered a response. "Lord Thai!? But you-"

"-I didn't ask you to comment about my presence!"I interrupted, pointing my Colt at Mikaela. "Why all the damn commotion?"

"H-He killed one of us-"

"-killed?"The Colt barrel switched over to the direction of the vampire.

Anger and slight confusion twisted its way inside of me. The incompetence of letting Mika even so much as look at a sword was enough to ignite my already horrible temper. It also didn't help that one of the captain's soldier's wa already killed.

"Y-Yes sir,"The captain softly said.

"Interesting,"I said, turning my head to glare at the child.

He needed to be taught a lesson; maybe a lead slug in his heart would teach the little squirt how to be more lenient. I cocked back the gun and aimed the barrel at Mika, who proceeded to put the sword in front of him as if trying to block the bullet that would come at him. Looks like the Queen's troubles would become moot.

However, before I could pull the trigger, Ferid grabbed the barrel of the gun and tore it from my grip.

"Ferid,"I growled. "Are you sure about this?"

"I'll take it from here, _Lord Thai_ ,"Ferid mused. "How about you and Crowley look for another pistol back in my Mansion?"

"..."I took another glance at Mika, who glared at me ferociously. "As entertaining as that would be..."

"You may go now,"Ferid smiled.

* * *

Ferid's Study had an overwhelming amount of ancient books, tomes, and manuscripts that filled every shelf aligned inside. However, along with his many books that Ferid loves to read, he did keep guns in here. Before, when I found the Schofield and the Frontier Twins, they looked to be the only guns that Ferid kept. However, Ferid did hint that I just didn't look hard enough. An existing option for a replacement pistol was the LeMat, but a bulky pistol, although beautiful and ornate, wasn't necessarily a great pistol to wield. The mechanism was more fragile to use than the Colt, and given the speed and force I use when fanning and thumbing the hammer, it could break the pistol. I was hoping that Ferid maybe kept a Ruger or even the well admired Buntline Special.

"What's your fascination with revolvers anyway?"Crowley asked, searching for them as well.

"Well...when I was eight years old, I saw my first Clint Eastwood movie and it was the most amazing thing. It was either _A Fistful of Dollars_ or _The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly_ , but when I saw Clint Eastwood pull that pistol out, it made me want to be the Man with No Name. However, life isn't like the movies, but it came to life when Tosahwi, Yiska, Mad Jack and Gambler Gus decided to take me out hunting, and then shooting."

"Hm...I guess you're right. Life isn't like the movies, but you seem to play your role a little true to life."

"You really think so?"I chuckled. "When all this shit started, it seemed like a _Mad Max_ movie to me."

" _Mad Max_? What's that about?"

I sighed. "One day when this over, you, me, and Ferid _maybe_ , a giant TV, and a few bottles of blood. We need to make that happen." I checked the hidden drawer again, stuffing a few spare .45 Long Colt Rounds into my pocket before searching around the drawer.

"You still act like you're human,"Crowley remarked. He opened a drawer and lazily looked around it.

"I still know a good movie when I see one,"I said. "Still...I guess that's an overwhelmingly concerning question."

"What question?"

"Well, taking into account that I don't think twice about shooting anyone, but still know a decent amount of morality, that begs the question: When will I become a mindless, unthinking, unmoving killer like the monster who has turned me?"

Crowley gave a little smirk. "Well...I have been alive for 800 years or so..."

"That's a wide range of time..."I trailed, checking another drawer.

"Well, I'm guessing for you, your boyfriend is dead, but you continue to see him in your mind. You still love to use guns, which is evident seeing as how you always call yourself the 'Second Fastest Gun Alive'. You don't bat an eye when you kill anyone, your car got totaled, but you don't want to fix it-"

"-Are you getting anywhere with this?"

"You're already losing sight of who you were when you were human. I'm giving you, maybe, thirty years?"

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. You find anything?"

"Hm...hey! I found one."

Crowley held up a revolver by its barrel. I walked towards him and grabbed it from his grip, examining the craftsmanship of the gun.

"My God...I've always wanted one of these..."I awed.

Crowley looked at the pistol. "I don't know...it looks just like the one you have."

"Yes, but _this_ is a Ruger New Vaquero, a better version of my dusty old Colt. Stronger coil springs, transfer bar that stops premature firing, and still in the frame size of a regular Single Action Colt Army." I twirled it around my finger once and thrice before catching it by the handle. "The feel is good. I could have the grips replaced with, maybe, silver or ivory if we have any. Course, I'm gonna have to forge it myself and doing it for the Peacemaker was horrible enough..."

"Look what else I found,"Crowley said, grabbing for something inside a walnut-wood case sitting on top of a table.

"What is-"

Immediately, I caught the handle of a sword. The sword itself had the appearance of a simple saber with a yellow tassel hanging from its hilt. Suddenly, I heard the familiar sound of a sword exiting its sheath. My throat worked.

"Crowley...are we seriously doing this in here?"I asked nervously. I shakily held my sword out with my free hand hovering above it as if I was about to fan a revolver.

"Let's see if you've improved while we wait for Ferid-kun,"Crowley smirked, tapping my sword with his.

"Improved? I was imprisoned for days!"I said.

Crowley's sword was a vampiric First-Class medieval-like two-handed broadsword, only the difference was that he wielded it with only one hand. The intimidation was executed well; I was figuratively shaking in my knees. My free hand suddenly took out the Vaquero and cocked it with the intention of making Crowley change his mind about fighting me. His intentions never faltered; Crowley let out a forceful swing that collided with my sword, knocking me through the door of the Study and out onto the Lobby. I crash landed on my back, losing the Vaquero and the Peacemaker before I hastily jumped back up.

Crowley dropped down in front of me and readied his sword. I raised my sword out, inching myself back towards the Ruger. However, Crowley saw this and rushed at me. I narrowly dodged him before swinging my sword at him, but missed him by a near inch. Crowley had my Peacemaker and the Ruger clutched in his hand by their barrels.

"If you want these, you're going to have to fight me for them,"Crowley taunted.

"Dammit, Crowley! First of all, that Peacemaker's rightly mine, and secondly, you're gonna get yer ass beat, old man!"

Crowley guffawed. "Old man? I look younger than you."

"Like Hell,"I retorted. "En guarde, you fallen knight!"

"Damned Pistoleer."

Before we clashed swords, a third sword entered the fray, blocking both of our strikes. Confused, the two of us looked to see Ferid interjecting our "friendly" bout. I groaned and dropped the sword on the ground.

"Aw~you don't like the gift?"Ferid mockingly said.

Crowley handed me back the two pistols. "The Ruger? Yes. The sword? Go fuck yourself."I turned back to Crowley. "You were in on this, weren't you? Don't even deny it, you are a horrible liar."

"Haha, it looks like our little game is up, Crowley-kun~"Ferid smiled.

"Game? You just told me to spar with him,"Crowley said. "This doesn't seem like one of your many games."

"The saber and the Ruger...fine, I guess. And, I'm around eighty-five percent sure that with a sword, Crowley's 'lessons' are included as well,"I growled.

Crowley nodded.

"...you know what? I got something in mind for you, too, Crowley."

* * *

One Year Later...

* * *

Although my involvement within Ferid's Faction was a questionable position, it wasn't once questioned by Ferid, even when I was the subject of a Progenitor Council Meeting. A year ago, my position in Japan was questioned by Third Progenitor Lest Karr, the ruler of Eastern Europe, and Fourth Progenitor Weiss Beaufort, the ruler of North America. Lest Karr's subjects apparently discovered yet another human organization bent on completing the project that destroyed the world in the first place, wanting the famed "Gunslinger" to help him quell the destruction of the world _again_. While it took a while for her to speak up, I already knew the reason why Weiss Beaufort wanted me out of Japan. She let slip the thought of having me return to my original home, even going so far as to claim me by saying she was the "ruler of the desolate town that [I] was born from."

Urd wasn't one to decide so quickly, in part due to him being my sire. However, Weiss wasn't so adamant about being pushed away from acquiring me in her faction. Only weeks later, she appeared before me as I made a new outpost in Kofu City. Before I could even get out of my car, she surrounded it with a dozen of her finest soldiers.

"Well now,"I whistled. "A Good Evening to you, too."

Unlike Krul Tepes, Weiss Beaufort had the appearance of a well-mannered, young woman around her mid-twenties to early thirties. She had short red hair, a diamond earring hanging from her right earlobe, and wore a stern, yet modest expression. Her uniform consisted of a black shirt, white military jacket, a white overcoat with black trimmings and , white trousers and a pair of black thigh high boots. She wore black gloves, a saber hanging from her left hip with another hanging from the right, and golden necklace around her neck.

"Stay in there,"she ordered.

Unperturbed by her stern tone, I laid back on my seat as the Fourth Progenitor made her way towards the passenger door. She got in, shifting the sword on her hip around her waist to better accommodate herself inside the small Sakura Truck. Her lackeys dispersed around the perimeter of the truck, a few making their way towards where I was planning on staying while others surrounded the truck in a twenty foot radius. Weiss held her hand out; I groaned and pulled both the Ruger and the Colt out of my rig and handed both guns to her. She dropped them under her feet, pressing down on them with her right boot.

"I still don't understand how you can operate like a human,"she spat.

I chuckled. "How so?"

"You still use firearms, for one. Such a mundane weapon..."

"And you think swords and shields are the right way to go? I believe in hitting hard, fast, and at a range of at least twenty paces."

She exhaled sharply. "Do you know why I am here, Tenth Progenitor Thai Nguyen?"

"You want me back in the States,"I answered. "You claim that since I'm from California, you are my actual Master."

She smirked. "Not entirely."

She opened up her jacket and pulled out a revolver, handing it to me by its rather infamously long barrel. I smiled; I was being handed a Buntline .45 Special. However, from the looks of it, this was no ordinary Buntline. The infamous pistol that Wyatt Earp allegedly bore, the Buntline was essentially a Colt Peacemaker with a 10-12 inch barrel, the one Weiss had bearing a 13 inch barrel. However, this Buntline was special-I could sense it once I gripped my hand on its walnut stock.

"...this is a First Class Weapon...isn't it?"I asked in awe.

"Let's just say I found a way to forge this piece of junk out of the Late Tenth Progenitor Antonis' sword. My Weapon's Experts informed me that normal .45 Long Colt rounds will be enhanced once you command your weapon to drink your blood."

"Why the gun?"I asked.

She chuckled. "I'm sure you've heard of the rumors circulating about Third Progenitor Lest Karr?"

"You mean the ones where he wants to expand? Yeah, I've heard a rumor or three."

"He currently has his sights set on Japan. I don't know what or how he's going to do it, but he plans on usurping Third Progenitor Krul Tepes."

"So, where do I fit in with this awesome new gun of mine?"

Weiss ran her hand through my hair, pulling my right bangs to my side to reveal my right eye. "Lest Karr is not the only one intending to expand."

"The entirety of North America isn't enough for you, is it? You all berate and chide me for acting human, yet I see greed and hunger for power."

"Watch your tone, boy,"she snapped. "You might be the Fastest Gun Alive right now, but I am more than capable of killing you where you stand!"

Unthreatened, I lazily put my hands up in the air, the Buntline on my lap. "Didn't mean to offend, your Highness..."

She scoffed. "While I have size, I don't have the firepower that Krul and Lest have. I might be a Fourth Progenitor, but I'm stronger than those two nitwits! Still, I couldn't find a way to match their armies. However, it was then I recalled seeing a stupid little magic trick performed by a certain American. Do I really need to spell it out for you?"

"You want me to join your faction?"I asked. "Thus, the Buntline."

"Think of it as a little gift to persuade the mind,"she said. "I dug up your records, your documents and whatever was claimed to you at your little house. 'Second Fastest Gun Alive', amateur car fixer, failed Biology student, Bisexual lover...accused murderer."

"Watch it..."I muttered, crunching the knob of the drive stick.

Weiss merely snickered. "My apologies. That year must have been Hell for you. Still, you pulled it off."

"Not one of my prouder moments...and how do you figure this? Just because you got to know about me better through burnt up documents and newspapers and gave me an overpowered gun, you think I'll work for you?"

"You do what I need you to do, and I'll make sure you get what you desire most."

"And what do I desire most of all, hm?"

"Urd Geales..."

The drive stick broke off completely. Ferid's Faction, Krul's Faction, Weiss' Faction, I didn't care which one I was in. "Forgive but not forget" was not one of my ideals. I was itching to see Urd Geales gunned down by either bullet or sword, but I knew it was impossible, for now. Even if I joined Weiss' faction, I very much doubted that she could be the architect of my revenge.

"You're going to have to try harder than that,"I softly growled. "While the both of us would love to see his head on a pike, I will not be joining you as of today."

I flipped the gun around and handed it to her stock-side to her, but she declined.

"Like I said, it's a gift to persuade the mind. I imagine for you, it works a lot better than that sad saber next to you."

I nodded and placed the gun on my lap.

"I do hope you reconsider my offer, Thai. Your talents are being wasted here when they could be used for...oh...so much more."

"I'll keep that in mind. Have a Good Evening, you Highness."

She started out of the door, but closed it. "Something else on your mind?"

"When you were human...how could you have loved a person of the same sex? It seems-"

"-unnatural? No. I believe you have other things to attend to back home. I wouldn't want to bore you with the story of my life."

She sneered and stepped out of the car, ordering the dozen or so vampires around us to follow her away from Kofu City. I knew Ferid was most likely watching our little encounter, but I knew he wouldn't do anything about it. He approached me later as I was dragging what i had by a rope up towards the top of a certain stone stairway. Ferid, whistling a tune that annoyed me, caught up to me.

"Making new friends?"he asked.

"No, but I'll be returning that sword you gave me,"I said, slapping the Buntline under my belt.

He whistled. "Crowley-kun's not gonna like this,"Ferid chuckled.

"Yeah, this'll piss 'im off,"I chuckled.

"So, did you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Take her offer, of course! Become the Queen's Gunslinger!"

"No."

"Really? She offered you a chance at Urd Geales-"

I threw down my belongings and drew the Buntline, pressing the barrel against Ferid's heart. "I don't need some power-hungry broad with a sword to control me! Urd Geales?! Pfft! He will taste the white-hot lead of my gun, I swear it! But, I'm not gonna kill my Sire just to have another cold-hearted bitch become my Master!"

"What about Krul-"

"-Fuck her! She doesn't own me!"

"What about little old me?"Ferid maliciously grinned.

I sighed angrily. "You're already too much to handle."

I put away the Buntline and grabbed my belongings, Ferid chuckling to himself.

* * *

How are you liking the story so far? Leave a review.


	10. NEW STORY ALERT

**You know that feeling when your story felt a little flat? There were things I wanted to add, remove, take the derivative of, etc. that were so numerous, I realized I needed to do a slight rewrite. So, the new story is up and while there aren't so many changes to it, an entirely new direction is laid out for the Last Gunslinger. Also, thank you for the favorites, reviews, and views. I never actually thought people would so much as even skim this story to be honest.**

* * *

 **"Did you hear that?"Ferid said. "You're getting a new story!"**

 **"I know. I'm looking at it right now,"Thai said, looking at the crudely written script. "So far...it looks exactly the same!"**

 **The Gunslinger tossed it over to Crowley, who grabbed it with a swift hand.**

 **"Hm. Says here you don't have the Lusus Naturae anymore,"Crowley said.**

 **"Really!? What does he have now~?"Ferid asked.**

 **"A motorcycle. Makes more sense than a car that can be driven without a driver."**

 **"It had a thing for the foot pedal! You know! To catch it! How else was I supposed to chase down Guren?"Thai said.**

 **"Come to think of it,"Crowley said, still reading the script. "What was with that LeMat? First it's unloaded, but then it is?"**

 **"It was a matter of luck!"**

 **"What about the silver handles? What's with you and silver? Don't you know it's dangerous to vampires?"Ferid chuckled.**

 **"That's false information directed by countless Supernatural and Sci-fi Authors around the globe. Besides...it looks cool."**

 **"Whoa!"Crowley's eyes widened. "Look at this!"**

 **The three peered over the script.**

 **"Holy crap!"Thai said. "I really do that? I don't even know how to lasso."**

 **"I'm still surprised you would do this,"Crowley said. "That's barbaric."**

 **"And look at this,"Ferid said.**

 **Thai grunted and put on a pair of reading spectacles. "'I growled something fierce, picking up my burnt and scarred body from the blackened asphalt. I cocked the revolver with my twitching thumb, my eyes narrowing in on the man in front of him...**

* * *

"You son of a bitch!"roared the man.

"AARGH!"

I aimed his gun and took my shot, the man's body crashing to the ground. He let out a pained scream, ending only when his head made contact with the asphalt. I let out another roar of agony as I dropped down to my knees, my right hand slamming the Ruger on the asphalt. I looked down and saw blood pouring from my knee. I screamed in pain as I rolled on my back near a roaring fire. Suddenly, a dark shadow loomed over me, the light of the sun blocked as a face with red eyes peered down at me.

"I-"

* * *

 **"Spoiler Alert!"Ferid interjected Thai's reading. He grabbed the script away from Crowley.**

 **"Dammit, Ferid,"Thai said. "I was reading that."**

 **"And you will, once _they_ get a chance to read it."**

 **Ferid dramatically pointed behind Thai and Crowley.**

 **Thai looked to where Ferid was pointing, Crowley also wondering why he was pointing at empty space.**

 **"Um...who are you pointing at?"Crowley asked.**

 **"The viewers, of course. Say hi to them, why won't you?"**

 **"Er...how do you do?"Thai confusingly asked, scratching the back of his neck.**

 **"He...llo?"Crowley joined, even going so far as to wonderingly waving his hand.**

 **"But in all seriousness, this story sounds better,"Thai said. "I wonder what he meant by 'Revenant'..."**


End file.
